Hügelkultur Raised Beds

[gtaus]

I have a 8 ×10 garden shed that I won't go in until the weather gets better. The electric bills in California are ridiculous. The so called garage we have is so about to fall apart. No window but a huge hole where there should be one. Holes in the roof bc they used metal roofing that has holes in it. It's crazy.

Yikes! That does not sound good.

If you replace the metal roof, you might be able to use the metal panels to make some raised beds. When the cost of wood was more expensive than gold, I build some raised beds using galvanized steel roofing panels instead of wood. I just used some salvaged wood to build the frame and the steel was used for the sides.

Here is a picture of one of my galvanized steel panel raised beds that I was setting up with some hügelkultur wood...

At the time, I think I spent about $30 for the steel panels whereas the cost of building it with all wood was over $100.00 at that time.

Anyways, if you replace that leaky steel roof on your garage you might be able to reuse those steel panels in a raised bed. Holes in the steel won't matter.

 

[akroberts1085]

I prefer wood to be natural, as well. My pallet wood hügelkultur beds are all natural wood color, aged by nature. The sitting bench I made out of salvaged wood is just natural color. I did not even bother to sand it down. But the used wood was in pretty good condition as it was.

However, I have seen some people who paint everything out in their garden with painted raised beds included. Not my cup of tea, but it has its own aesthetics that look nice if you know what you are doing. The only thing I painted outside was the chicken coop. That had to be painted to protect the OSB board I used in the build.

I'm good when it's a basically a mandatory deal but painted wood is just yucky.

 

[gtaus]

I just finished another pallet wood raised bed in my garage. I hope to make at least one more before spring planting. Here is a partial copy of the post I made on the thread Show Me your Pallet Projects....

*****

I decided to finish off the pallet wood raised bed v2.0 that I started last week. Here is a picture of the build, finished, but standing upright in the garage to save space...

At the top of the frame, you can see 4 black lag screws with washer heads. I salvaged them from a pallet I picked up last year. They are super strong lag screws and perhaps a bit of overkill for what this project requires. Last year I looked up those lag screws and they were selling for about 80 cents per screw. I salvaged them for free, so might as well use them up.

Next time I'll just use some 4-inch-long drywall screws with a washer on the head. For a raised bed build, the long drywall screws with a washer should work just fine. The strength of the corners actually comes from the two 2X4's in each corner that are screwed into the outer 2X4 frame.

I used my 18-gauge brad nailer to attach the planks to the inside of the frame. That went really fast. I had enough options in wood that 3 sides did not require any special cut for the last board. That was pretty amazing. The one side I had to make a special cut because the top and bottom were off by 1/4 inch in the width of the board needed. Not too bad considering all the wood was only rough cut.

Again, this pallet wood raised bed build costs me less than $2.00 using lots of salvaged hardware and free pallet wood! That is one of the things I really like about this project.

Well, I don't want to leave with a last picture of my new raised bed standing upright in the garage, so here is a picture of what they look like out in the garden with some plants in them...

Now I just have to talk Dear Wife in helping me team carry that raised bed outside so I have enough room to make another raised bed in the garage. It's not too heavy, but it is bulky and I'm at an age where I will team lift stuff that as a young man I would move by myself.

*****

Anyways, these pallet wood raised beds are making excellent hügelkultur raised beds because they are 16 inches high. The bottom half will be filled with Hügelkultur wood and the top half filled with topsoil/compost mixed 1:1.

 

[fuzzi]

I worked on my Hugelkulture-type raised beds today:

I also amended one of my other beds:

Looks better!

 

[gtaus]

I worked on my Hugelkulture-type raised beds today:

That's looking really good. Looks like you have a bunch of branches to get rid of in one of those pictures.

Do you use any larger logs? I put 6–8-inch round logs in the bottom of my hügelkultur beds because I have so many to get rid of. Then I put on smaller branches, leaves, etc... I don't know if a larger log is any better than smaller branches piled up, but I think the important thing is to use what you have and what you need to get rid of in the yard.

Did you buy those raised beds in a kit? I like the 4X4 inch posts with the groves in it to slide down the boards. That must be really fast to put together. Would love to hear more about those kits and how well they work out for you.

 

[fuzzi]

I bought my first raised bed kit from Greene's Fence (https://greenesfence.com) and set it up in 2022. The reviews for the kits were good, and I liked that it was made of cedar. The climate here is rough on wood, so I wanted something that would last a few years.

The kit was super easy to set up. The hardest part was leveling the ground underneath.

One post and one board arrived damaged. I contacted the company and they express shipped the replacement parts.

First bed - May 2022

I bought two more beds on sale and set them up in March 2023.

Again there were a couple damaged boards, and the company replaced them immediately. The customer service is amazing.

June 2023 (beds #2 & #3)

The company had a sale late in 2023 and I invested in two more beds. Those are the ones I am working on.

Site preparation for beds #4 & #5

The location is partly on the site of my old raised bed garden, which had small trees growing there a few years ago, so the set up was more involved. I had to use my reciprocating saw to cut down stumps and remove roots. There's still some work to be done around the beds but I can chip away at it anytime.

Raised bed garden, from about 2008.

The trees that were cut down (2020)

Current view:

Bed #2 has been prepared, half planted with sugar peas. It's on the left in the back, has row cover cloth on top to keep squirrels and cats out. Bed #3 has cattle panel trellises and is planted with collards.

I'm still pulling back carpeting that we laid over the tree stumps to smother growth. It's a process.

 

[gtaus]

I bought my first raised bed kit from Greene's Fence (https://greenesfence.com) and set it up in 2022. The reviews for the kits were good, and I liked that it was made of cedar. The climate here is rough on wood, so I wanted something that would last a few years.

Thanks for the link. I love the look of cedar and how long it will last. I visited the website link and wanted to share some thoughts I have...

That is the basic size of my garden beds as well, except the pallet wood version I make is 16 inches high. But I really like the 4X4 foot size as it is easy to reach just about anything from any side of the raised bed. The 4X8 foot beds are great, but you do have to move around that sized raised bed to reach everything.

I love using my DIY critter guard on my raised beds. It keeps the rabbits out if you have plants that need extra protection. I built my DIY critter guards when my raised beds were only 6 inches high. Since I now make my pallet wood rasied beds 16 inches high, I have not seen any rabbits hopping up into my raised beds.

Having said that, I have built some DIY critter guards with wire on the top of the frame as well to keep out birds. I found that I had to cover and protect some plants from birds. Also, I had a deer problem for a while and the screen on top gave the young plants enough time to grow without being eaten by deer passing through my property. By the time the screen had to be removed for the plants to continue to grow, the deer had lots of other natural food to eat and did not bother my plants.

I was happy to see that picture. My father built 3 of these planters, using 2X8's, and we had them in front of our 3-car garage for many years. I have not used those planters for a number of years, but I still have them stored away behind the shed. I think maybe I'll have to find a spot for them somewhere in the backyard alongside the raised beds and grow something in them this year.

I love cedar and how long it will last. But I'm also getting a bit old so I am taking many of these design concepts and building them using free pallet wood. If you are interested in doing stuff like that, check out the thread Show Me Your Pallet Projects. A big part of the pallet wood world is saving money, of course, but I also just enjoy making stuff myself. It's a hobby for me. Anyways, there are lots of great pallet wood projects posted by the BYC members on that thread.

 

[Sally PB]

I prefer wood to be natural, as well

Us too.

I paint the stuff for the chickens, because I want to protect the wood, and a 5 gallon bucket of white paint will last me years. And, they don't care.

 

[fuzzi]

Thanks for the link. I love the look of cedar and how long it will last. I visited the website link and wanted to share some thoughts I have...

View attachment 3750219
That is the basic size of my garden beds as well, except the pallet wood version I make is 16 inches high. But I really like the 4X4 foot size as it is easy to reach just about anything from any side of the raised bed. The 4X8 foot beds are great, but you do have to move around that sized raised bed to reach everything.

View attachment 3750226

I love using my DIY critter guard on my raised beds. It keeps the rabbits out if you have plants that need extra protection. I built my DIY critter guards when my raised beds were only 6 inches high. Since I now make my pallet wood rasied beds 16 inches high, I have not seen any rabbits hopping up into my raised beds.

Having said that, I have built some DIY critter guards with wire on the top of the frame as well to keep out birds. I found that I had to cover and protect some plants from birds. Also, I had a deer problem for a while and the screen on top gave the young plants enough time to grow without being eaten by deer passing through my property. By the time the screen had to be removed for the plants to continue to grow, the deer had lots of other natural food to eat and did not bother my plants.

View attachment 3750229

I was happy to see that picture. My father built 3 of these planters, using 2X8's, and we had them in front of our 3-car garage for many years. I have not used those planters for a number of years, but I still have them stored away behind the shed. I think maybe I'll have to find a spot for them somewhere in the backyard alongside the raised beds and grow something in them this year.

I love cedar and how long it will last. But I'm also getting a bit old so I am taking many of these design concepts and building them using free pallet wood. If you are interested in doing stuff like that, check out the thread Show Me Your Pallet Projects. A big part of the pallet wood world is saving money, of course, but I also just enjoy making stuff myself. It's a hobby for me. Anyways, there are lots of great pallet wood projects posted by the BYC members on that thread.

I've had someone nibbling my lettuce, but it was planted by the edge of the bed so a determined rabbit might be the culprit. In the past I have had cats and squirrels digging in the beds, so I am pondering a cheap method of adding some barriers that will protect my beds. I have a short roll of 24" chicken wire and another short roll of plastic chicken wire fence. I want to create something very simple with what I have on hand, maybe utilizing old wooden tomato stakes. And movable.

 

[gtaus]

I've had someone nibbling my lettuce, but it was planted by the edge of the bed so a determined rabbit might be the culprit. In the past I have had cats and squirrels digging in the beds, so I am pondering a cheap method of adding some barriers that will protect my beds. I have a short roll of 24" chicken wire and another short roll of plastic chicken wire fence. I want to create something very simple with what I have on hand, maybe utilizing old wooden tomato stakes. And movable.

If you want cheap and easy, take your 24 inch chicken wire and just fold it every 4 feet to go around the raised bed (4X4 bed), You could use zip ties to connect the ends. Than just put a stick in the soil, through the chicken wire, and done! I have a couple of those simple barriers and they have been in use for at least 5 years and still work great.

To keep out the birds and/or deer, just take some more of the 24 inch chicken wire and put it across the top of your wire. Again, cheap zip ties would serve well to hold it together. I have a couple of those "critter protective cages" and they work just fine.

If you want something with a little firmer structure, you could build a simple frame out of 2X2 lumber and attach your chicken wire to the wood frame.

Google picture of that concept, just cut to your dimensions...

I have both 4X4 and 4X8 raise beds. I made all my critter protective cages 4X4 foot, and will just double it up for a larger 4X8 bed. They are easy to move and as long as you have beds that are 4X4 or some multiple of that, then you can just easily move the frame(s) to a different raised bed as needed.

Way back in the day I used metal cage clips and/or wire from a spool to tie my chicken wire together. But honestly, lately I'm using zip ties for just about everything because they are cheap, easy to use, and easy to cut off if you want to use the wire in some other project. If you want the zip ties to last longer, make sure you buy zip ties that are UV rated for outside in the sun.