The Best Plants for Raised Garden Beds
About 5 years ago we changed from traditional gardening to raised bed gardening. It has been a game changer for us. Our soil was full of clay and was like fighting with concrete. It was difficult to amend the soil. Not only are raised garden beds easier to maintain, it is easier to prep the soil and certain vegetables just seem to thrive in a container. I want to share the best plants for raised garden beds.
We have grown just about every vegetable in our raised garden bed including corn, pumpkins, squash, tomatoes, peas, lettuce onions and more! From my experience there are some vegetables thrive a little bit more than others. First I want to share what plants struggle just a bit more than others.
Corn
We have planted corn about 4 times in our raised bed, and while they grow beautifully, they seem to struggle to grow nice ears. Whether that is from the spacing, the raised bed, nutrients, or bee pollination, it just doesn’t thrive. So, we have decided not to grow it in our raised beds, unless we spread them out more and fill at least two raised beds with corn.
That being said, I think we will try to plant them again in planter boxes in the future.
Pumpkins and other vine plants
Depending on the amount of space you have around your planter boxes, you can plant pumpkins, squash and cucumbers. Plants that spread may seem harder to plant in boxes, but they actually do really great. You can add a trellis to allow the plants to grow vertically to save space.
So, these will be on both lists, because I actually love planting my pumpkins in my raised beds.
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Great plants for raised garden beds
Standard Veggies
- Tomatoes
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
- Peppers
- Onions
- Lettuce, spinach, kale
- Herbs
- Corn
- cabbages
Vine Plants
- Pumpkins
- Cucumbers
- Squash
- Peas
- Melons
- Pole beans and bush beans
Root Vegetables
- Carrots
- Sweet Potatoes
- Potatoes
- Beets
- Radishes
Perennial Plants
- Asparagus
- Strawberries
- Raspberries
- Rosemary
- Dill
how to build
Affordable Raised Garden Beds
Follow this tutorial to build affordable raised garden beds for your backyards. Don’t break the bank and enjoy your bounty
Raised Bed Tips for a Successful Vegetable Garden
- Make sure that your planters are deep enough to accommodate root vegetables if you plan to plant potatoes, carrots or beets.
- Use the layered method to fill your planter boxes for less.
- Make sure to use an organic fertilizer monthly on your plants to aid in nutrient availability since the plants are contained.
- Make sure to give your plants the appropriate space. Sometimes planting in a raised bed will tempt you to grow things closer together but some plants will suffer such as corn, pumpkins and more. Give them plenty of room.
- Add rocks to the bottom of your raised bed for proper drainage with your soil.
- Extend your growing season by using row covers early in the spring and late in the fall. You can purchase covers that will fit right over your raised-bed garden.
- When planting tomatoes, make sure to consider enough space for tomato cages or use a trellis system to keep them upright as they grow.
- Plant flowers such as marigolds or nasturtiums to help encourage bees to pollinate your blossoms.
- Install a drip system to water your plants, this helps to save water and allows the plans to get the water right where they need it.
- Add a ground cover mulch like straw or wood shavings to keep moisture in the planter boxes. In my experience, raised beds do dry out faster than in ground gardens.
Are you ready to switch to a raised planter garden? Check out how I fill mine for less, create plenty of organic matter and nutrients all at the same time! You will also create your own compost doing it this way.
how to fill
Raised Planter Boxes for Less
Use this layering method to fill your raised garden beds for less money. Create rich, organic soil that continues to mulch and break down over the years giving you a nutrient-rich soil.
You will be so glad you decided to plant in raised planter boxes. The harvests are amazing, the weeds are more manageable and I find I have less pests too! You can add flowers to your boxes to increase both bees and butterflies to your garden.
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