Since ancient times, our housing patterns have mandatorily involved a garden with inbuilt raised garden bed plans around it. We have been constantly taught the importance and value that nature holds in our surroundings, be it for playing, hanging out wet clothes, or planting flowers, fruit, or vegetables; each activity displays our connection with Mother Nature in its own way.
With a change in trend and the ever-evolving pattern, the owners of modern housing are also in pursuit of bringing nature to their dream homes. Very similar to bringing back the old in the new. Out of many different ideas that could be used to put up a beautiful and productive garden, one of them is raised garden beds. Raised garden beds provide ample opportunities to help everyone eager to start gardening.
This article is dedicated to helping you explore similar ideas of raised garden bed plans that will help you continue gardening in different situations and provide an excellent option for the overall look of the home.
Let’s get started!
1. For Herbs Production
Herbs are leafy plants that do not require large spaces of land to grow and have medicinal properties. Instead, a small concentrated area helps with better production and care for the plants. Herbs like mint, rosemary, coriander, sage, parsley, and oregano, among others.
These are some of the many options that would grow nicely in a raised garden bed. Make sure that the raised garden bed plans have deep and porous options so that herbs of all heights and species can thrive in the bed and be healthy.
Also, the raised garden space helps with complete protection and care of the herbs. All herbs require dry soil with comparatively less water than other plants. A separate space helps with proper conditioning and reduces the chances of mishaps.
2. Metal Beds
Galvanized steel is the best type of metal that should be used for raised garden beds. Steel helps in growing healthy plants. There is a misconception or hesitation around the sustainability and usage of metal-raised garden beds. But it is as safe as clay or wood beds. The metal beds can be molded into customized designs and can be used as flower pot stands for indoor plants.
It gives a good look and a healthy environment in the house. Though it gives out a good look, it may not be affordable for everyone. The competitive pricing makes it limited to a certain percentage of consumers. The metal beds can be effective for prolonged time periods, thus proving to be cost-effective against the utility.
3. Polished Raised Garden Bed
Raised garden bed plans work wonderfully for people suffering from chronic back pain, lower back pain, or back pain induced surgically. Overall, it helps the person to continue with a healthy lifestyle and enjoy a hobby without taking extra medication.
The height of the garden beds can be adjusted in the raised garden bed plans according to the severity of pain and painless forward bending movement by the owners. A table can be constructed to keep gardening equipment along with elevated taps with water pipes. Water pipes Would be a better option for watering than carrying heavy watering cans.
Plants that do not require much attention could be the best possible type of plants to opt for the garden bed. Some of them are the basil plant, sacred fig tree, neem or Indian lilac tree, and mulberry tree.
4. Wood Pallets
The most common material recommended in raised garden bed plans. It is a much cheaper alternative than steel. And gives out a good rustic vibe to the garden. However, the durability of the wood can pose a few issues. Wood tends to go bad when it has prolonged exposure to moisture. Well, in the case of plants, it can be a 24/7 job, especially when it rains. So, make sure to it for good quality wood that can withstand moisture for a longer tenure, like, cedar, redwood, and juniper.
The bottom of the bed can be protected by gravel if the raised garden bed is kept in the ground. This is why the gravel will help in drying up the moisture faster and protecting the wood. But in the case of garden beds that are elevated from the ground, good protection of the interior of the bed is required so that the wood can last. It can be used to grow indoor plants, or herbs like lavender and sage can be grown in elevated beds as they require dry soil with less amount of moisture per day.
5. For People Having Cemented Yards
Not everyone has the privilege of walking into freshly dewed garden grass right outside their back door. In many urban cities, we come across cemented flooring areas already constructed outside the house. But, it must not be the reason to stop people from enjoying the fun and joy of setting up their own garden. Raised garden bed, plans can be the best way to set up a garden in such conditions.
Grass mats can be used to carpet the cement flooring, giving your backyard the perfect garden look. Also, make sure the garden bed material is porous and deep so that plants of any choice can be planted. The cemented flooring helps with a strong passageway and retains moisture as well.
6. Double-Decker Garden Beds
For ideas like these, every single inch counts. Every extra square foot that we buy costs us not less than thousands. So it is best to use all space effectively and efficiently. Placing double-decker raised garden bed plans for your garden design is a good option.
This way, we can plant twice the number of plants in the same space with the help of tools and equipment. The double-decker beds are no different than regular garden beds. It just allows more planting options. In fact, the bottom layer that is placed on the ground will receive most of the water from the elevated garden beds, hence helping to save water. Also, plants requiring less sunlight can be planted in the bottom layer. The elevated garden beds will act as a shade.
7. For a Clean Gardening Experience
Most of us enjoy growing plants and creating a beautiful garden for our house. But taking care of plants and keeping the garden clean can be a rather tedious job. Raised garden bed, plans can help tremendously in cleaning a clean garden at most times. The raised beds help in giving a fencing look to normal circular pots.
It creates a distinction between the garden grass and plants. Separation helps in keeping the plant mess different from the grass, helping with a cleaner garden. The raised beds help in keeping the soil intact and protect them from draining in the rainy season. This removes the tasks of extra fencing and cleaning during rainy seasons.
8. To Protect Plants from Animals
When the animals are vulnerable and hungry, they tend to attack the garden and house for food and shelter. In this case, fruits and vegetable plants can act as an extra treat for the animals. Though the raised garden bed plans cannot be a 100% solution to protect the plants from animal attacks, they can safeguard them from a great percentage.
The raised garden beds help in creating a specific territory for the plants, making it easier to create specific boundaries or fencing with wood or wire to protect the plants. It also helps safeguard the plants from getting trampled under the paws of animals, especially those which weren’t the cause of the attack, like flowering plants.
9. Cement Beds
Cement helps in creating a solid and sturdy structure for the pants that do not get spoilt due to insect attack or moisture. Cement beds have a longevity of more than one decade, making them extremely cost-effective. Make sure to understand the designs in the raised garden bed plans and give a green light only when it’s perfect.
The colors and designs can always change, but the cement won’t, not even be altered. So it is very important to approve the design, so be vigilant. The cemented garden beds can also be used on the terrace. This helps in preventing the roofs from leaking in the house or apartment and still be able to enjoy a garden.
10. For Bonsai Lovers
Bonsai is the art of growing ornamental trees and shrubs as a dwarf. Trees that naturally grow up to a height of 20 feet or more can be grown in a small pot through this method over the years. Growing bonsai rather than crafting it doesn’t have to limit their access to flat flower pots with low depth.
In fact, raised garden beds give out a beautiful and authentic tree-like structure with a comparatively good height. The raised garden beds give the plants a good space and allow us to be creative by adding stones, miniatures, or succulents to make it a complete masterpiece for the showcase.
11. Stones
Stones are the most durable material to construct raised garden beds. The stones do not require regular care and conditioning as it does not wear and tear easily. Any shape of the stone can be adjusted to a unique design as per choice. Stone-made raised garden beds are best effective when they are raised from the ground. It does not work as an elevated garden bed.
It gives an exquisite medieval and earthy look to the garden. It is not important to use grey stone only; in fact, a combination of colored stones brings out a good design too. It is good to have an all-natural garden, including plants and their beds.
12. Facilitates in Supporting Plants
We know that raised garden bed plans indicate creating separate areas for planting distinct plants. It helps us in separating herbs, salad plants, flowers, fruits, and vegetables in different beds and areas. Also, helping with cleaner and more organized space. The garden-raised beds are a very good choice for plants that seek support. Plants like tomatoes, betel leaves, Asian pigeonwings plants, jasmine, etc., require constant support to grow.
The raised garden beds help in creating a proper cage to support the plants, which otherwise can loosen up in garden soil due to rain or excessive mulching. Though it might look an added work, climbers flower plants particularly exquisite, spreading their bloom all across the garden.
13. Gives a Geometric Look
Raised garden bed, plans allow us to design our gardens with innumerable materials and not just with paints and stones. Thus allowing us to play with the structure of the garden beds. Different geometrical shapes like circles, triangles, pentagons, hexagons, and octagons.
It can be opted instead of the traditional squares and rectangles to enhance the look of the garden. Building different shaped structures in the garden allows us to plant multiple seeds of a particular plant in a specified space. Although the design works best for spacious gardens, its essence can be accommodated in small garden spaces and even balconies. Overall it gives a nice look to the garden and makes it appealing.
14. Ladder Design
It is one of the many designs that come under the raised garden bed plans. The ladder design basically means planning different garden beds on the steps of the ladder. The ladder is usually made of wood, steel, or plastic. The height of the ladder does not exceed more than four to five steps. The idea is to keep the garden beds on top of the steps and place it on the side of the garden.
Here, we can put show plants, flowering plants, or herbs. It gives out a rustic look and also provides us with the opportunity to reuse old and abandoned ladders into something worthwhile. This also helps in stacking up 4 to 6 plants in the same place, thus saving a lot of space for other activities.
15. Tyres
We have a simple hack that will not only solve the need for a raised garden bed but also give the garden a different yet decent look. The hollow portion of the tires can be used to grow plants. At the same time, the tube portion gives good support and protection to the plant. Although the option might look very creative and cost-effective, it is required to change the tire settings from time to time when they start to wear and tear as it won’t give a good look either
Conclusion
Raised garden bed plans might give out a very urban and standard living character, but it is rather regular. If we step into villages all across India, the concept of garden beds will seem quite rural and old.
The raised garden beds are a logical and practical concert that helps in better production of plants along with helping with taking better health care. The points mentioned above give the readers varied options on the design, concept, and usage of raised garden beds.
Comment down your thoughts below and let us know of your experience.This will help in creating a community of our own that will eventually play a huge role in helping everyone in some way or the other.
Also, it will help you increase the overall ambiance of your home and will add a much-needed character to the overall serenity.
