I purchased my farmhouse on the last day of 2018. After living in an overcrowded city subdivision for four years, I was thrilled to start gardening the following spring. Although the farm has acreage, I recognized immediately that I did not have the equipment, time, energy, or need to plan the same sized garden my parents had that fed a family of seven when I was a child.

I decided that Raised Bed Gardening made more sense for me. There are several benefits to a raised bed garden:

Location: A raised bed garden can be placed in any flat area that gets a large amount of sunlight every day. I chose a location just off my kitchen entrance, which also is situated near a water spigot too.

Maintenance: Raised beds are easier to maintain than a traditional garden. The soil’s makeup can be easily adjusted because it is simple to mix in nutrients, the vegetables can be grown in a more concise pattern, and the elevated beds are easier to control weeds.

Beds: Prefabricated raised beds can be purchased in all shapes, sizes, and heights. I did not want or need anything fancy though so for one bed, I purchased lumber, l-brackets, and nails at my local home improvement store. That bed is made with 2″ x 12″ boards and are approximately 8′ x 8′. It’s a bit too big, making it difficult to manage the veggies in the center but I make do. I always plant my tomato plants in that bed. I have another bed that is simply a piece of an old crate used to ship material to a local business. It was being thrown out, so I was able to get it for free. If you’re new here, you will quickly learn that I repurpose a lot of things here on the farm!

Control: In addition to weed control, raised bed gardens also provide better water control. For areas that typically have sandy soil, a raised bed can provide better water retention. If you have clay soil like me, raised beds provide better water drainage. Soil temperature can be controlled a bit as well, and there is less soil erosion!

You can find more photos and videos of my raised bed on my Instagram.

I do plan to renovate the raised bed garden area in the future. I would like to create a more aesthetically pleasing space since this is right off of the kitchen/driveway. It’s the first space most guests see. I would also like to place gravel around the beds to control weeds and give the space a more finished look. More to come on that project!

I was not compensated for this post, and it contains no affiliate links. All opinions are my own and not influenced in any way. Photo credits can be viewed by hovering over each image above. All sources found online unless property of Eclectic Jenn.