Caring For A Raised Garden Bed
How do I start designing a raised garden bed for my garden?
If you want to create or improve a garden at your home or farm, the step of designing raised garden beds is an important one! Here we will share with you 3 different planting bed design types, as well as their unique benefits and dimensions so you can build your own. This information comes from Plenitud PR’s most recent book, ¡Siembra Boricua! Manual de Agricultura en armonía con la naturaleza. This manual was created to support continuous learning and the agroecology movement in Puerto Rico.
Benefits of Raised Garden Beds
There are different types of raised beds, and their use provides diverse benefits, such as:
Creates an optimum substrate mix with higher biological activity, better texture and drainage.
Reduces competition with nearby plants.
Reduces the amount of labor for the farmer or home gardener.
Enhances soil or substrate aeration, providing better drainage and avoiding compaction (a crucial aspect in humid areas with heavy rainfall).
Makes it easier to perform gardening tasks such as weeding and mulching.
It helps to increase organoponic production by focusing the farmer's efforts in a specific area.
3 Most Common Styles of Raised Bed
Traditional Raised Planting Beds
This is the easiest and most common design. It is also more achievable on a tight budget, and it has been utilized successfully in most of the demonstration projects presented in our book ¡Siembra Boricua! Manual de agricultura en armonía con la naturaleza. However, in the tropical climate of Plenitud, they do require more maintenance. Some elements to consider:
These types of beds need to be weeded more often.
The soil can become easily compacted.
They need more regular infusions of organic matter, love, and time so proper soil structure and soil life can be achieved. This style of planting bed can also cause more erosion in sloped areas.
Raised Planting Beds with frames or containers
Using this design, it is easier to achieve and maintain optimal conditions of humidity, soil texture, and organic matter when compared to the traditional raised beds. In some cases a plastic impermeable layer is placed in the bottom of the bed (before adding the soil mixture in which the plants will develop) to delay the germination of weeds in the raised bed. The bed frame can be fashioned with reused roofing sheets, untreated lumber, rocks, bamboo, or cement. If you prefer containers for gardening, you can modify an old refrigerator, or a 55-gallon drum (cut longitudinally). In both cases, remember to poke holes in the part that will be on the bottom to provide drainage!
Elevated planting beds on a frame made of metal, wooden, bamboo, or other material.
This is the most expensive of the 3 styles described here, which may limit the size of the garden bed. However, this design provides the advantage of a more comfortable gardening position, given that the farmer doesn't have to crouch or bend down to plant seeds or weed the soil.
Dimensions
Width
Warys, a member of the Proyecto Agroecológico El Josco Bravo, advises to make planting beds 4 feet (1.22 meters) wide with walkways of 1.5 to 2 feet (0.5 to 0.6 meters) wide in order to maximize space use. On the other hand, Don Luis of Finca Mi Casa, advises a maximum width of 3 feet (1 meter) for the planting beds to work on them more comfortably.
Length
The length of your planting beds will depend on the space you have available and your preferences. Luis Sierra of the Proyecto Agroecológico el Josco Bravo advises not to make planting beds too long, so you don't get discouraged when it's time to plant or weed, and to be able to walk more efficiently through the field or garden.
Depth
For herbs and small vegetables (e.g. scallions, cilantro, arugula, lettuce, radishes, beets) it is advised that the planting bed has a minimum depth of 6 inches (15 centimeters), while bigger crops (e.g. peppers, eggplant, tomatoes, kale, cucumber) require a minimum depth of 12 inches (30 centimeters).
Shape of the Raised Bed
There’s a wide variety of shapes in which a raised bed can be made. One of the most commonly seen shapes is the rectangular raised bed. Rectangular raised beds allow us to perform certain gardening tasks more efficiently, and they are a great way to start a garden. Another example of shape is the keyhole-shaped raised bed, which aims to maximize the use of space in the garden. We recommend a shape that will ensure an efficient output appropriate to the garden space you’re working with.
Thanks for reading our tips and ideas on creating a raised garden bed!
Want to continue learning?
Order a copy of the book ¡Siembra Boricua! Manual de Agricultura en armonía con la naturaleza.
(Only available in Spanish)
During the pandemic, we hosted ¡Siembra Boricua! LIVE sessions on Facebook and Instagram every Thursday at 5:00pm. These recordings are available to watch on our Youtube here. Each week we discussed a different topic in farming from the perspective of permaculture and agroecology, and offered practical solutions to common agricultural challenges.