Raised Garden Bed Ideas

There are many benefits to creating a raised garden bed. Plants can obtain more of the oxygen that is so crucial to their growth. Since you establish the soil in a raised garden bed, you can use the ideal mixture for each type of plant, which will result in larger, healthier flowers or vegetables. A basic raised garden bed is a small plot planted in elevated soil contained by walls or other containers. However, you can be creative with your raised garden ideas.

Multi-Level Raised Garden Beds

Rather than building basic square or rectangular-shaped raised beds and placing them side by side throughout your garden, add visual appeal by creating a raised garden with multiple levels. For example, you can build a 4 foot high, square raised bed and then place 3 foot high beds in the same shape and diameter around the taller one. This extra height will create an interesting layered look in your garden. Another way to create a multiple level raised garden is to build several large beds, fill them with soil and then build several smaller beds in varying shapes and sizes. Place the smaller beds atop the soil in the larger beds and fill them with soil as well.

Raised Garden Beds Around Seating

Build raised garden beds around seating in your garden or yard. If you have benches, picnic tables or other garden furniture, create a lush, inviting hideaway by building raised beds tall enough so that, when you are seated, the top of the raised bed is just beneath eye level. You can create a bed to serve as a single wall beside or behind the seating, or build a "U" shaped raised garden bed to conceal the area. If you build a block or stone bed, it can double as additional seating as well. Plant fragrant, vividly-colored flowers in the beds. If you are using the beds to surround an outdoor eating area, consider growing vibrant, tempting produce instead.

Raised Garden Beds on a Slope

If an area of your yard is on an incline, you can use raised garden bed ideas to better utilize the space. Build standard raised beds and use appropriately-sized bricks or blocks to prop up the side of the bed that is on the slope. Wet or dig out a bit of the earth where the bricks will be placed so that they will be tightly wedged into the ground. Then, when the beds are filled with soil, only a minimal amount will escape from the garden bed. Place the raised beds in stair-step fashion down the slope.