By Jackie Sledge
Big Country Master Gardener Association
I shared with you recently some of my experiences with different ways to grow plants in my heavy clay soil because it is so difficult to dig holes to put any size plant in the ground. I dig a few inches, fill the hole with water, dig a few more inches, fill the hole with water, and keep repeating until I have a hole deep and wide enough for my new plant. To make gardening easier, I have added raised beds, pots, planters, and grow bags to introduce a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors to the landscape. In my last article I shared information about grow bags, and now I’m going to talk about raised beds.
What is a raised bed garden?
A raised bed garden is simply a planting area where the soil is elevated above the natural ground level and is enclosed on the sides with frames or walls. They are usually constructed from wood, brick, stone, concrete, or metal, and most raised beds range in height from 5 inches to 32 inches.
What are the benefits of gardening in raised beds?
1 – It doesn’t matter what type of soil you have! This is a very important advantage of gardening in raised beds because you don’t have to worry about amending the ground-level soil for planting. You determine the quality of the soil in the raised bed when you build the bed and fill it.
2 – Raised beds are easier to maintain. Since you plant higher than ground level, you do not have to bend over as far to take care of your plants. Raised beds are better for your back!
3 – Raised beds don’t have as many weed problems because soil or soil/compost mix is used to fill the raised bed. This soil is fresh and not already contaminated with weeds or weed seeds. If, or when, weeds appear in a raised bed, they are easier to remove because the raised bed soil does not compact like regular soil.
4 – You have a greater growing space in raised beds so you can plant more densely. As a result, you have more plants and less weeds in a small area. This provides a higher yield of vegetables or a full, lush flower bed.
5 – You need to have paths between raised beds. That means your plants have a better survival chance because they are protected from damage from being stepped on or from water hoses, wheelbarrows, or tool caddies. The paths make it easier for you to get around in your garden.
6 – It is easier to control pests in raised beds. You don’t have to bend over as far to examine plants for pests and treat the plants, and growing plants off the ground can be a natural barrier for creeping pests like snails and slugs. If the sides of the raised bed are at least 2 feet high, the low-flying pests such as some flies are not a problem.
7 – You can ensure that the plants in a raised bed get equal amounts of water since they are in a contained space with no runoff.
8 – Adding nutrients to plants in a raised bed means they all get “fed” equally. You can tend to all plants in a raised bed at one time, and that’s more manageable than working with the same number of plants spread out over a larger area.
9 – The soil isn’t compacted by walking on it so there is not heavy-duty digging needed before planting your spring and fall gardens.
10 – Soil in a raised bed gets warm quicker in the spring than ground soil so you can plant earlier. Soil in a raised bed stays warm longer in the fall so you can extend your growing season longer. Raised beds are easy to cover if you need to protect plants during a late cold snap in the spring or an early cold snap in the fall.
11 – Raised beds can be designed to be accessible by everyone – individuals using walkers or in wheelchairs, individuals with limited flexibility, or individuals with health issues requiring them to either sit or use special equipment.
What are the issues or problems of gardening in raised beds?
1 – The main issue is that you need materials to construct the raised beds, and this can be quite expensive depending on the type of bed(s) you want. You can get prices on wood, brick, stone, and metal to build the bed, or you can purchase kits containing all the supplies needed. Lots of choices!
2 – You need to buy soil or soil/compost mix to fill the raised bed, and this can also be expensive. If you have a tall raised bed, you can use cardboard, branches, leaves, etc. as part of filling the bed keyhole style or lasagna gardening style. This filling material will break down over time, and you will need to add soil to bring the level up to the desired depth before planting again.
3 – Be sure you know exactly where you want each raised bed in your landscape because they are very difficult to move if you want them in a different place. You must empty everything out of the bed, take apart the walls of the bed, and then rebuild it in the new location. Whew! That takes a lot of time and energy, so be sure the beds are in the right place before filling them.
Additional tips for successful raised bed gardening:
1 – Be sure to know what you will be growing in the raised beds, so you know where to locate them to ensure successful plant growth. Remember to consider sun/shade, air circulation, a convenient water source, and ease of getting to and from the beds with tools and supplies.
2 – Think size when planning a raised bed, and make sure you can reach all plants in the bed. If you can reach 2 feet, then the bed shouldn’t be more than 4 feet wide so you can reach plants in the middle from both sides. Raised beds can be in many different shapes so consider that when deciding on the configuration for your bed. Do you want square, rectangle, oval, circle, or unusual shapes such as a heart, triangle, or u-shaped bed?
3 – Add mulch to raised beds to preserve moisture in the soil and to regulate the soil temperature. You can use straw, wood chips, bark, crushed leaves, or grass clippings.
4 – You can add a self-watering system to raised beds. There are inserts that can be put in the bottom of raised beds before soil is added. You can also bury olla pots that can be filled with water that will assist with keeping plants watered.
5 – Drip irrigation can be used by adding emitters, drippers on stakes, or soaker hoses in raised beds. You can add an automated timer to the drip system for consistent and controlled watering.
6 – When the temperature is high, adjust your watering schedule or system to water more often.
7 – Fertilize plants as needed.
Watch for the next garden article about filling, planting, and maintaining raised bed gardens.
The Big Country Master Gardener Association presents free education programs every month. There is a program at 6:00 p.m. on the 1st Tuesday of the month at the Abilene Public Library South Branch in the Mall of Abilene, and the same program is presented again at 10:00 a.m. on the 2nd Friday of the month at the Abilene Public Library main branch in downtown Abilene. We also have a Master Gardener Saturday Seminar from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon on the last Saturday of the month from February through August in the Taylor County Extension Office Conference Room. The theme for the monthly BCMGA Library and Saturday Seminar presentations in 2025 is “The Year of the Garden.”
We are here to help you. If you have any questions, call the Taylor County Extension Office at 325-672-6048 or email us at bcmgardeners@yahoo.com. We hope you will also visit our Facebook page, our website at bcmgtx.org, and the BCMGA YouTube channel for all Big Country Master Gardener information, events, and training.
Until next week, happy gardening!
