Four years back, when we moved into our house, I was super excited about the big yard. Being a garden enthusiast, I wanted to shrink the grassy area and make more space for flowers and veggies.
After getting rid of the weeds, I started digging to plant a rose. About a foot down, I hit three layers of thick black landscape fabric. It was a tough job, but after cutting through it, I found pure sand. Then, bam! I hit bedrock.
It took me a good two hours just to plant one rose.
To turn my yard dream into a reality, I needed a better plan. Even though I eventually managed to handle the in-ground borders, raised beds saved me when I couldn’t spare the time to make the ground usable.
I began with wooden beds, but they’re showing signs of age. My next move is to switch to Birdies Garden Beds, made of durable, food-safe galvanized steel, and they come in different heights and colors.
Are you curious if raised beds are right for you? In this read, I’ll share 15 reasons why you should start raised bed gardening. Raised beds transformed my gardening game, and they might just do the same for you. Let’s dive in!
Take Charge of Your Soil Health
When you’re dealing with in-ground gardening, you’re stuck with whatever soil you’ve got. It might be too sour or too basic, too clayey or sandy. Erosion could be causing trouble, or your soil might lack organic matter and nutrients. In my case, I had to battle through layers of landscape fabric and rock.
With raised beds, you’re in control. You get to create the perfect environment for your plants. Just fill them with good soil and add some compost, then figure out what your plants need.
Dreaming of a blueberry bed? Adjust the acidity with elemental sulfur. Fancy growing sweet potatoes? Fill a deep bed with loose, nutrient-rich soil.
Sure, you can improve in-ground soil, but it takes time. Raised beds let you easily adjust nutrients and tweak growing conditions for thriving plants.
Avoid Contaminated Soil Woes
I’m currently volunteering with an afterschool gardening club, creating a garden at a local high school. The day before we started transplanting our starts, grounds maintenance sprayed Roundup all over our future garden site.
The students were understandably upset, but luckily, all was not lost. In situations like these, raised beds can save the day.
Even though we can’t plant in the ground anymore, we can still use the site and keep our plants away from the contaminated soil. We’re using large containers and donated raised beds, filling them with fresh, safe soil.
Whether your garden is on an old orchard site recovering from pesticide use or in an area exposed to environmental pollutants, raised beds allow you to garden safely. If you’re worried about contaminated soil, conduct a soil test and opt for raised beds, especially for food gardens.
Steer Clear of Packed Soil
To reach the center of my deep pollinator garden and care for plants, I often have to step on the soil. However, walking on the soil, especially when it’s wet, leads to compaction.
Compacted soil causes water runoff and hinders drainage and oxygenation. Roots struggle to expand and access the nutrients they need.
With pathways between narrow beds, you can easily reach your plants without trampling them or compacting the soil. The soil stays loose, allowing air to circulate and water to flow through. Problem solved!
Conserve Water
Raised beds save water. Traditional sprinklers water the garden haphazardly, wetting weeds and bare areas as much as your veggies. Raised beds let you focus water directly on your plants at the root level where it’s needed.
Drip irrigation, more water-wise than sprinklers, is easier to set up in a raised bed. While raised beds may dry out faster, the water you use drains well, and retention improves with organic matter and mulch.
Did you know overhead watering can lead to fungal diseases? Fungal spores thrive on damp foliage, and these diseases spread more easily in cool, damp weather. With a raised bed garden, aiming at the root level is simpler. Altogether, raised beds are a clever choice for reducing water usage.
Boost Drainage
If your clay soil is a waterlogged nightmare, you know plants won’t enjoy it. Soggy soil leads to rotted roots. Raised beds make it easy to add stuff like sand and perlite to improve water and nutrient movement.
Overwatering spells disaster in gardening. Raised beds offer excellent drainage, letting water flow freely to roots and out the bottom. The taller the bed, the better the drainage.
On the flip side, sandy soil struggles to hold onto moisture. Bone-dry soil means parched plants. Raised beds help by easily enriching with compost and mulch to keep things moist.
Cut Down on Weeding
Who enjoys weddings? If you didn’t raise your hand, raised beds might give you more actual gardening time by reducing weed pressure. Plants that spread through rhizomes won’t invade the beds, and the new, weed-free soil you use isn’t already full of new weeds.
The soil is less compact, more nutrient-rich, and can be densely planted. All these factors make raised beds less welcoming to weeds.
Around my raised beds and lawn, dandelions are a common sight. I garden organically, avoiding pesticides and herbicides for the health of my family and the environment. Surprisingly, dandelions never pop up in the raised beds! Turfgrass, a major weed pest, doesn’t encroach on my flowers and berry bushes like it does in the ground.
If a stray weed does appear, it’s easy to spot and pull, unlike the back-breaking work of dealing with ground weeds.
Boot Pests Out
Raised beds make it easier to keep pests out of your garden. Tall beds will slow down slugs and discourage rabbits. Voles are stopped when the bottom of the beds is lined with a reliable mesh. Dogs can’t reach your peas with their legs raised.
If flea beetles and whiteflies bother you, it’s easy to throw row covers over your veggies when they’re snug in a raised bed. While raised bed gardening won’t eliminate pests, it significantly reduces the problem.
Ditch the Tiller
Tilling is common in agriculture and some home gardens to loosen compacted, nutrient-poor soil and remove existing plants.
Unfortunately, tilling damages soil structure and disrupts helpful microorganisms. Raised beds, easily amended yearly with a new top layer, make tilling unnecessary.
I don’t yank roots out of my raised beds. Instead, I clip spent plants at ground level, leaving the roots to decompose and nourish the soil. Come fall, I cover the beds with chopped leaves. In spring, I freshen up with compost and mulch.
Each year, adding nutrient-rich layers on top of your raised beds enhances soil health, allowing the structure and microbial activity to improve over time.
Keep Aggressive Plants in Check
Ever planted mint, kale, or oregano? If you have, you know they can become garden bullies. Mint spreads rapidly, kale reseeds everywhere, and oregano can be a bit too enthusiastic. Growing herbs and other aggressive plants in raised beds helps keep them contained.
Don’t let their aggressive nature stop you from growing these fantastic plants. Raised beds will keep them in line! I have a bed with various types of mint mixed with robust giant sunflowers. In the ground, they would take over slowly.
Raised garden beds manage aggressive plants while showcasing their abundance in a controlled and purposeful way rather than letting them go wild.
Boost Your Harvest
Getting more crops is a big plus with raised bed gardening. These beds let you plant closely, packing in more plants per square foot. No need to step on the beds to harvest, as pathways and rows aren’t required, avoiding soil compression.
Having control over soil quality and nutrients in a raised bed results in healthier plants. Loose, oxygenated soil promotes robust root development, leading to increased production.
Research suggests that using raised beds can up your yield by 30-50%, depending on the crop and growing medium. In a small home garden, that’s a significant improvement!
Make Crop Rotation Simple
Diseases and pests thrive when their favorite plants grow in the same spot year after year. Diseases linger in the soil or on decomposing plant matter, ready to strike again in spring. Pests lay eggs or pupate in the soil, waiting to feed on their preferred plants next season.
Crop rotation disrupts pests and diseases by changing what you plant in each area.
If you face tomato blight, grow your favorites in a new spot where they can start fresh. Avoid planting species from the same family as last year—no new nightshades in the old tomato bed.
How do raised beds fit in? They make tracking and rotating crops easy. Just note what you planted in each bed to organize each year’s rotation. I keep it simple with a sketch of my beds and their layout.
If I planted tomatoes in bed A last year, I might put in squash this year. I aim to mix it up for 3-4 years, then start the process again with tomatoes. Soon you’ll have an easy rotation to follow, making your garden less welcoming to pests and disease.
Extend Your Season
Sometimes, I think I should trade gardening for skiing. In my garden, I only get four months of growing time. The rest of the year is a snowy, freezing ordeal.
If you’re stuck in a short growing season like me, you’ll love any trick to extend your gardening time. Raised beds let you plant earlier because the soil warms up and dries out faster.
Come fall; raised beds make it a breeze to shield your crops from early cold snaps with frost cloth or row covers. You might even stretch your growing season with a cold frame. Adding a few weeks at each end means an extra month of growing time!
Keep it Adaptable
Raised beds offer maximum flexibility. Renting? Choose portable, durable raised beds that can move with you. Your raised bed setup can be temporary, letting you garden wherever you go.
Try small raised beds for apartment balconies or pocket-sized patios. If you plan on moving, don’t bother investing in an in-ground garden. Raised beds keep you gardening in any setting.
For permanent residences, raised beds help you avoid root competition from large trees and shrubs. Place them wherever there’s the most direct sun (6-8 hours is best), and make the most of the space you have.
Maintain a Neat Look
I love the cottage garden style—full borders, flowery meadows, and meandering paths. While it delights me, to others, it might seem a bit…messy.
I let much of my yard grow in a managed, beautiful chaos, but raised beds keep the kitchen garden looking neat. If you love organized spaces and clean lines, raised beds will make you happy. If you’re relaxed about order but want to keep the neighbors at ease, raised beds will do the trick.
Raised beds naturally create a structured area surrounded by intentional pathways. They look crisp and neat, making it easy to create an aesthetically pleasing garden. If your lawn is weed-filled, dried out, or patchy, raised beds filled with healthy plants are an immediate, beautiful upgrade.
Experiment with different shapes, like L-shaped or round beds, to achieve the garden look of your dreams. Put them in the front yard and gather compliments. Raised beds make gardening look good.
Give Your Body a Rest
I won’t admit to being old just yet, but a day of in-ground gardening leaves me needing a nap. My knees ache from kneeling, and my back protests from all the bending. It’s a full-body workout.
Raised beds, especially those you don’t have to kneel for, can make gardening a breeze. Older folks and those with limited mobility can sit in a chair to tend their plants. Harvesting veggies becomes a pain-free task without any neck kinks.
Planting in my raised bed garden’s loose, crumbly soil is a piece of cake. It makes gardening more accessible. I have different bed shapes, and the pathways between them let me reach all my plants easily.
Final Thoughts: 15 Reasons to Start Raised Bed Gardening
Elevated plant beds make gardening simpler and more efficient. They allow you to garden in any available space, providing flexibility. These beds lengthen the gardening season, boost your harvest, reduce weeds and water use, and lessen the impact of pests and diseases.
If these advantages don’t convince you that raised beds are the way to go, think about how your back feels after a day of gardening. Picture not having to bend deeply or kneel to weed. Sounds great, doesn’t it? Investing in raised beds ensures you can keep gardening, no matter your future limitations.
Raised beds are a total win. So, go ahead, and get some (or build them). You’ll be happy you did.
