How to Build Inexpensive U-Shape Raised Garden Beds
Interested in growing your own food? Having food security? Controlling the chemicals on your veg? Raised beds allow you to achieve all these goals even if you have a small yard or patio.
After finishing our retaining wall project, we were left with an incredibly empty, sad looking blank space of dirt.
While there is a whole long list of things that need to be done, I knew that putting the raised beds back in was a must. There’s nothing better than growing your own food.
Except for maybe eating it.
1. Plan
My plan is attached for you below, but you may want to change the specs based on your own space, which is totally doable. Here’s how:
Assess your site
Make sure that the area gets at least 6 hours of full sun every day to ensure the plants are happy. Veggies need as much sun as possible.
If you have an area that is close to your kitchen, that would be ideal.
Measure your space
Take exact measurements so you know exactly how much space you have to work with. This is especially important if you have limited space.
Draw a plan
Putting your idea down on paper is incredibly helpful. It is much cheaper and easier to fix mistakes on paper than it is in real life. Utilize your plan to figure out what won’t work in your space, and to dream of all the possibilities.
Graph paper is an amazing tool to ensure you have proper spacing, letting each square to represent a square foot. That being said, you can make your plan on a napkin – you don’t have to get fancy. Just put it down on paper with the measurements represented.
A few things to think about while making your plan:
- Do you want them in a specific shape or design? Raised beds can be really beautiful in arranged shapes. Think Beatrix Potter or an English cottage garden. You can get super creative with this based on the amount of space you have.
- How many or few beds would you like? The more beds means the more food you can grow, and I always find that I wish I had more space to grow things.
That being said, it also requires more wood and soil which will add to the initial cost, plus the maintenance of caring for those beds. Starting with fewer will allow you to figure out if it’s something you are going to stick with without the financial and time investment. - How wide do you want your walkways? Allow for at least 2.5 ft for walkways, 4 ft (or more) is best and will allow for a wheelbarrow to get in if you need it. We did most of our walkways at 3ft, some at 2.5.
- How wide do you want to make the beds? Consider your arm’s reach when deciding how wide to make them. Most people can reach to the other side of a 3-ft bed. A 4-ft bed would require going around the other side of the bed to reach everything. Anything larger than 4 ft may be a challenge to reach to the center of the beds.
I was working with limited space, about 20×18. I wanted to maximize that space as much as possible, while still allowing room for flower beds around the outside and a small fence (that will be put in eventually – stay tuned!) to section off the veggie garden area, creating it’s own “garden room”.
Our prior beds were a 4×4 and an L shape. I decided to connect the two beds and make it a U shape for a little bit more growing space.
Collect Supplies
The following tutorial is based on our U-shaped beds, but it can easily be customized to fit your plan.
(3) Douglas fir 2×12 wood in 16ft lengths
(1) box of 2.5” exterior coated screws
(1) 2×4 for bracing in 8ft length (optional but recommended)
Saw
Drill
Driver
Level
Notes on supplies:
The exterior screws are coated and shouldn’t rot. The first time we used regular old drywall screws, and they were rusted when we took the beds apart, which was only about 3 years after being assembled.
The 2×4 is optional. It provides extra support to hold the boards together if they warp, but you probably could screw them right into each other.
DO NOT use pressure treated wood for raised beds! While it may seem like the ideal option as the raised beds will be outside, the chemicals that they treat the lumber with will seep into your soil and then the roots of your veggies will suck it up, leaving you with chemical-filled food. It defeats the purpose of growing in raised beds. Don’t do it.
Cut Boards to Length
Cut list:
2×12:
(2) 10 ft
(2) 6 ft
(1) 8ft
(2) 3 ft
(1) 2ft
2×4:
(8) 10″ sections of 2×4
Notes on Supplies:
At my Home Depot, they only had 12ft, 16 ft and larger lengths of 2×12. Doing the math enabled us to make sure there was no waste and we utilized every bit of wood.
Check out our post here about wood purchasing tips to save you time, money and headache.
We had the three 16ft boards cut in the store so we could get them home easily. One board was cut in half at 8ft, and the remaining two boards were cut into 10ft and 6ft sections.
One of the 8ft boards were cut further into 3ft, 3ft and 2ft sections at home.
You can use any saw you have or just have it cut right at the hardware store.
Then cut your 2×4 into 8 sections measuring 10”. These are for the corners to support the joints. If you really don’t want
them showing you can cut them even shorter and cover with dirt when assembled.
Prepare the ground
If the area that you plan to put your raised bed is not level, issues can arise later when the boards are assembled, like pulling away from each other or breaking. Either dig out or add soil until the area is level so your boards can lay flat.
Lay out your boards
Place your boards where they will live to assemble right in their spot. The beds will be heavy, awkward and very difficult to move once they’re assembled, so build them outside in the area they’re going to stay.
Give each corner a 2×4 support and grab an extra set of hands if you can.
Be mindful of how the front and back are laid out and keep it consistent. If the back piece is inside the adjacent two boards, but the front pieces are on the outside, it will not line up right.
Screw the boards together
Have your buddy hold two boards together in the corner and use your driver to drill a hole through the board and into the 2×4, making sure that the 2×4 is aligned with the lower part of the boards so that it won’t show in the end. Then screw into your hole.
The first one is the hardest.
You could also screw your 2×4 to one of the boards while laying flat, then attaching it to the adjacent piece. 90-degree angle clamps would also be handy if you have them, but I haven’t had an issue just holding them together.
Once the first one is assembled it will stand up and the remaining boards will go much smoother.
Continue holding, drilling, and screwing your boards together all the way around the U shape until it’s fully assembled.
And that’s it! You now have raised beds ready for soil.
Fill the Raised Beds
- Compost is the ideal mix to fill your beds with. But it is also expensive. If you can afford it, go for it
- Raised Bed Mix is easily accessible at your local garden center or home supply store. It is less expensive but still provides all the nutrients your plants need to thrive
- Hugelkultur is a method where you fill your beds with organic materials like wood, sticks, leaves, even newspaper under a soil level. This is a great way to save some money while creating your own compost as it will break down over time.
That being said, you will have to top your beds off from one season to the next as the soil level will drop when those items break down. But it’s a huge cost saver up front. - Fertilizer is a great addition to the soil to help your plants grow big and strong. I love using Espoma Garden-tone.
We also put landscape fabric around the base of the beds to keep the weeds under control. This is optional but recommended if you know you don’t want to plant directly around the beds. Do not put the fabric inside the raised beds as your plants will send their roots into the native soil, making them stronger.
Plant!
And now for the fun part! Plant your garden to your heart’s desire. Square foot planting is a great way to grow a lot of veggies in a small amount of space, perfect for this size bed.
To further your efficiency in your bed, you can also build a trellis directly into the bed that will allow for vertical growing. Check out our post on how to build a trellis for a raised bed here.
And that’s it!
There’s just a few simple steps to creating the raised bed garden of your dreams:
Assess your site
Measure your space
Draw a plan
Collect your supplies
Cut boards to length
Prep the ground
Lay out your boards
Screw them together
Fill your beds
Get planting!
Raised beds are an incredible way to grow an ample amount of healthy food on a budget. Now go get planting!
