Secrets to successful raised garden beds
The first time that New Jersey’s Resh Gala tried to grow tomatoes, she didn’t get a single edible fruit, thanks to blossom end rot and other struggles. But she was determined to learn from her failure. The next year, she had more encouraging results in her small raised bed and decided to keep growing. Since then, she’s learned that not everything will be perfect: Whether it’s a new pest infestation, bad weather or something else, every year is different.
But when one crop struggles, another one usually thrives. This determination to keep trying new things and continue gardening through difficulties lead to Resh being named 2020 Gardener of the Year by Burpee Home Gardens. Now she’s launched a business, Hundred Tomatoes LLC, to help other aspiring gardeners achieve their hoped-for harvests, and written the book Vegetable Gardening Made Easy. Her specialty is intensively planting herbs, flowers and vegetables together in raised beds that are both visually striking and productive.
Creating a beautiful and bountiful garden
Resh says, “Most home gardeners seek a beautiful garden that takes minimal time and effort to thrive.” That’s why she recommends polyculture gardening — growing several types of plants together in the same space. It’s a very different look than the traditional rowed-out vegetable garden.
This planting style mimics nature, reducing pest problems while attracting pollinators and beneficial insects in a healthy backyard ecosystem. Want to know her secrets to productive raised garden beds? Learn some of her favorite plant combinations below, and keep reading for her tips on choosing the best materials, planting medium and more.
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Beneficial companion planting ideas for raised garden beds
Resh says, “Polyculture confuses pests. I think of it as natural pest control for the garden.” Some plants repel insects and others act as trap crops, luring the pests away from susceptible plants. She often plants a border of herbs around her raised beds, using it as the first line of defense against insects. For example, the chives help repel pests from the strawberries and lettuce. The annual flower pot marigold acts as a trap crop: It attracts aphids, which remain on the sticky calendula foliage and leave peppers and tomatoes alone. Once you notice several insects trapped in the plant, it’s time to pull and dispose of it.
Resh’s favorite beneficial plant pairings:
- Cucumber + dill + nasturtiums
- Tomatoes + basil + marigolds
- Broccoli + chives + sweet alyssum
- Eggplant + sage + pot marigolds
- Carrots + thyme + peas
Benefits of raised garden beds
Raised beds have many benefits if you’re establishing a new vegetable garden:
Raised beds are easy to maintain
With clearly defined edges, raised beds help you manage your garden layout and reduce weed creep. They also make tasks like watering, harvesting and rotating crops easier to plan and execute because you can stack them as high as you’d like, to reduce back and knee strain.
Raised beds can go almost anywhere
Raised beds make the most of small or awkward areas—tuck them into tight corners, patios, or even rooftops. They’re completely customizable.
Allows for soil quality control
The foundation of a good garden is healthy soil. Transforming poor soil into a healthy, plant-ready state can take years — it’s not as simple as tossing a bag of compost or manure on top. But raised beds allow you to start growing right away and with the confidence that you’ll get a good harvest if the soil in the ground is nutrient-poor, too dry, too soggy or heavy clay, as Resh’s was.
Once a bed is established, compost is the secret sauce for healthy plants. Resh makes her own in a compost tumbler with kitchen scraps and pine pellets, and every fall she top-dresses beds with 3 to 4 inches of compost. When plants are starting to produce and set fruit, she sidedresses with more. If you don’t have access to this much compost, she recommends feeding your garden earthworm castings or compost purchased in bulk.
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Resh’s perfect planting medium for raised garden beds
Top 25% of raised bed:
- High-quality raised bed mix. (Resh likes the Coast of Maine brand.)
Bottom 75% of raised bed:
- 30% topsoil
- 30% compost
- 10% vermiculite for water retention
- 5% perlite to help with drainage
How to Calculate Raised Bed Materials
Length x Width x Height = Total volume For example, a 4x8x1 bed = 32 cubic feet of material
Using Resh’s suggested ratios above, this would translate to:
- 8 cubic feet of raised bed mix (25%)
- 9.6 cubic feet of topsoil (30%)
- 9.6 cubic feet of compost (30%)
- 3.2 cubic feet of vermiculite (10%)
- 1.6 cubic feet of perlite (5%)
Note: For several beds, it may be most cost-effective to order in bulk, measured in cubic yards. Divide cubic feet by 27 to determine cubic yards.
Utilize plant supports to maximize raised garden bed space
Support structures help a gardener get the most out of an intensively planted small space. Here’s how Resh matches the structure to the purpose:
Garden arches
Use these for vining beans, gourds, melons, squash and even cherry tomatoes. You may need to secure heavy fruit with netting or old stockings to keep them from breaking off. Resh likes to extend an arch between two beds.
Obelisks
These are perfect for plants whose foliage needs to be corralled, such as sweet peas, tomatoes, bush cucumbers, peas and even pole beans.
Fence panels
You can harvest beans, cucumbers and peas from both sides of these, and they’re easy to make with a cattle panel and wooden posts.
Teepees
Tie four garden stakes together with twine to create an easy structure for pole beans or peas. If plants need a little help climbing, make layers by wrapping twine at different heights.
Plant cages
Traditional tomato cages are too small for tomatoes, but they work well to corral medium-sized bushy plants, such as eggplants and peppers.
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Best materials for raised garden beds
Resh builds each bed with 2×6 untreated red cedar or Douglas fir boards and attaches a 4-inch-wide trim piece to the top edge of every bed. This makes it comfortable to rest a basket or sit on.
She recommends a height of 12 to 24 inches. The taller a bed, the less bending you’ll have to do to take care of it, but taller beds also require more amendments and soil, increasing the cost up front. Resh suggests beds no larger than 4×8 feet for structural integrity and ease of access.
Modify raised garden beds for pest management
If deer and rabbit damage is a concern, these 24-inch-tall hinged chicken wire cages will keep them out. Ready to work in the garden? Unhook, slide a barrel bolt open and flip the side down.
To keep digging pests out, Resh staples ¼-inch hardware cloth to the bottom of each bed. Line the inside with landscape fabric or cardboard before filling with soil to help the wood last longer.
Install irrigation systems to make watering easier
Install 1⁄2-inch drip irrigation tubing with emitters spaced 6 inches apart to provide even coverage for both large and small plants in a garden with several beds, where watering becomes more of a chore.
Follow Resh Gala!
- Author, garden coach and designer
- reshgala.com
- Follow on Instagram: @reshgala
