Using a raised bed for gardening keeps the weeds at bay and takes the guesswork out of amending your soil.

The cheapest way to create raised beds is to visit construction sites and forage for scraps.  Visit neighborhoods with new construction and ask the builder if he has boards he can’t use.  All you need are a few pieces of 2 x 8.  Pallet wood is also a good option, easy to come by at the back of large stores.  Nail your scraps together to create a square.  4 x 4 is a good size for easy reaching when tending your plants.

Cover the bottom of the box with wet newspaper to kill the grass underneath.  You can also use a weed cloth or landscaping cloth.  This will help prevent weeds from coming up to strangle your new plants.

One of the most shocking costs of raised bed gardening is the high price of DIRT.  Rather than purchasing bags and bags of “specially formulated” dirt, invest instead in a few five gallon buckets from the hardware store.  Then call around town and find out who will let you come by and fill your own buckets.

You need 3 things to make your own dirt:

• top soil to hold the water
• compost to provide the nutrients
• peat moss to break it all down and make it work well together

Locate a place that sells screened top soil, sometimes as cheap as a dollar a bucket.   Approach dairy farmers for composted manure.  (You can also ask at a horse barn, but don’t take it unless you’re sure it’s composted or it will kill your plants.) You will need to shell out some cash for a bag or two of peat moss. It doesn’t take much for a 4 x 4 bed, maybe two bags.

Mix the three components of your dirt in your box and you’ll be ready to plant.

For tips on what to plant, visit this post.