build a raised bed

When we think of growing food, many people envision large tracts of cultivated land in neat rows. Height of a boxThis is how large scale farming has been done for many years. Families think this is how gardening needs to be done, so they have tried to copy this concept in a small scale. As many of us have learned, this is backbreaking work that is time consuming. EZ gardens Raised bed gardening system has various advantages over traditional gardening. Here are a few:

1. Improved soil: Normal soil can take up to 7 years of constant nourishment in order to become ideal for gardens. Using your own soil will immediately give you the ideal soil right now! See the soil section on how to prepare an ideal soil for faster plant growth.

2. No Tilling: Normal soil not only contains massive amounts of weed seeds (which no one wants in a garden) It also is not very conducive to rapid plant growth. Raised bed soil never needs to be tilled because the soil remains loose, the few weeds that do sprout are easily removed, and roots of plants are able to grow better in the loose soil because oxygen can reach the plants easier.

3. Better use of space: Most of us don’t have a large tract of land for gardening. Raised beds condense the space necessary for a successful garden into a small space that can fit on any yard or even on a rooftop, or a small apartment terrace.

4. Protection from elements: a good rainfall can wash away all your enriched soil very quickly. Raised beds keep the soil from washing away.

5. Extension of gardening season:  Since raised beds are above the ground, the exposure to the air allows the soil to thaw faster for earlier planting. Also, raised beds can be covered, if necessary or desired.

6. Better water use: One of the most frequent ways that gardeners kill their gardens is by watering TOO MUCH! The water rots the roots or drowns the plants. Raised  beds come with built in drainage and will prevent you from overwatering your garden.

HOW TO SET UP A BOXhow-wide1

1. Make a container out of any material. It can be wood, bricks, rocks, vinyl, etc… The material does not matter, as long as it is sturdy enough to keep the soil from being washed away.  Ideally, all you need is between 6″ to 1′ in height on each side to grow most food. If you would like to save time and buy your boxes, you can get them from our partner by clicking on the button below. 

2. Make the container as long as you want, however don’t make it so long that you might be tempted to step through it to get to produce on the other side. Usually, most gardeners make their boxes 4′ 8′ and 12′ long.

3. Make your garden only as wide as you can reach on both sides. so if one arm on one side can reach 1.5 feet in, then you can assume that you will be able to reach 1.5 feet on the other side as well. Hence, the box should be no more than  1.5 feet on one side + 1.5 on the other side = 3 feet total.