What is a raised bed?
You might also know them as growbeds but a raised bed is essentially any garden bed that raises your plants and crops above ground level, typically made using metal or wood.
Raised beds offer many benefits to gardeners, including improved drainage and aeration, easier access to plants, and increased yields. In addition, raised beds can be used to create a more aesthetically pleasing garden design.
There are a few things to consider before buying or building a raised bed, such as the size and location of the bed, the type of materials to use, and the type of plants that will be grown in it. With careful planning, raised beds can be a great addition to any garden.
Here’s our guide to all things raised beds!
In this blog post, we'll cover:
What are the benefits of a raised bed?
What can I grow in a raised bed?
What material should I use for my raised bed?
What size raised bed should I buy?
Does a raised bed fit inside a greenhouse?
Why choose a Rhino Raised Bed?
What are the benefits of a raised bed?
There are many benefits to growing in a raised bed. Perhaps the most obvious benefit is that you can control the quality of the soil in your raised bed. This is important because the quality of the soil has a direct impact on the health and productivity of your plants.
Raised beds also offer improved drainage. This is important because it helps prevent the growth of harmful bacteria and fungi, which can damage plants. In addition, raised beds provide excellent air circulation, which is important for promoting healthy plant growth.
Growing off the ground is also a great way to deter naughty garden critters, such as slugs which will have to go to a lot more effort to scale the sides!
What can I grow in a raised bed?
A raised bed is an excellent environment for growing a wide variety of plants, including vegetables, herbs, flowers, and even small fruit trees. Some popular crops that do well in raised beds include tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, spinach, carrots, basil, and strawberries.
If you want to learn more about what you can grow and how to care for raised beds we have a handy blog online.
To get the most out of your raised bed garden, it is important to choose plants that are well-suited to the growing conditions. For example, if you live in an area with a short growing season, you will want to choose plants that mature quickly. Alternatively, if you live in an area with a long growing season, you will have more flexibility in terms of the types of plants you can grow.
What material should I use for my raised bed?
Depending on budget and personal taste, raised beds can be built using a variety of materials such as metal, wood or even plastic. If you're on a limited budget, wooden planks are a popular choice for raised beds because they're easy to find and inexpensive. Aluminium may be more expensive, but it also lasts a lot longer and won’t deteriorate over time unlike wood.
For more details into choosing the right material for your raised bed, take a look at The Norfolk School of Gardening's Essential Guide to Raised Beds.
Plastic is an option if you're looking for a raised bed that's easy and inexpensive to maintain, however it doesn't provide the best drainage or insulation for plants, plus they don’t look anywhere near as aesthetically pleasing as aluminium raised beds. That being said, many gardeners use plastic as a base layer in their metal beds to increase drainage.
What size raised bed should I buy?
That’s down to your preferences and the space you have available. We’d suggest not going too wide, as you’ll want to be able to reach the middle easily for weeding, pruning and harvesting.
Ideally beds should be at least 20cm deep, especially if they are built on paving or compacted soil. But you may want much deeper raised beds if you want to grow plants with deep roots, or to avoid bending down too much whilst gardening.
Does a raised bed fit inside a greenhouse?
There is no hard and fast rule for this, as it will depend on the size of your raised bed and greenhouse, but raised beds can be used down the length or even the rear of a greenhouse. Our Rhino raised beds fit effortlessly inside our greenhouses and can be ordered to match your Rhino greenhouse colour.
Why choose a Rhino Raised Bed
Most metal raised beds are made from galvanised steel for durability and can come in a wide range of designs and finishes to fit in with the design of your garden. Aluminium raised beds are an ideal choice fo