What Is a Raised Garden Bed?

A raised garden bed (or simply “raised bed”) is a large planting container that sits aboveground and is filled with soil and plants. It is a box with no bottom or top—a frame, really—that is placed in a sunny spot and filled with good-quality soil—to become a source of pride and pleasure, and a centerpiece of the garden.

Raised beds have many benefits. Here are a few reasons why you should consider using one:

Garden chores are made easier and more comfortable thanks to less bending and kneeling. Save your knees and back from the strain and pain of tending the garden!

Productivity of plants is improved due to better drainage and deeper rooting.

Raised beds are ideal for small spaces where a conventional row garden might be too wild and unwieldy. Raised beds help to keep things organized and in check.

Planting in a raised bed gives you full control over soil quality and content, which is especially important in areas where the existing soil is rocky, nutrient-poor, or riddled with weeds.

Raised beds allow for a longer growing season, since you can work the soil more quickly in the spring in frost-hardened regions, or convert the bed into a cold frame in the fall.

Fewer weeds are seen in raised beds thanks to the bed being elevated away from surrounding weeds and being filled with disease- and weed-free soil.

Raised beds allow for easier square-foot gardening and companion planting.