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  • From: "Sage Austin | Eureka! Design" <eureka AT hctc.net>
  • To: homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Homestead] Raised Beds
  • Date: Sat, 02 May 2009 13:46:06 -0500

Yes, our raised beds are made almost entirely from pallets. I believe the Healthy Harvest blog shows my husband holding a couple of pallet pieces he will turn into a corner piece for a raised bed. The only part we bought was the board on top to give us a place to sit when we plant and weed...very handy. They are about 28-24 inches tall when complete and about 3' wide and so most veggies are in two or three rows. We can easily reach in from either side. The paths between are wide enough for a wheelbarrow and mulched with pine shaving taken out of the chicken coop. They end up composting in place and getting added to the next season's bed.

Basically, we cut the pallets in half and bury a few inches into a trench for stability. We take some of the boards off the inside and nail them over the gaps on the outside so the soil doesn't fall out. They are held together with strap ties and corner braces of metal on the inside, as well as the top board.

We get the pallets for free from local hardware and feed stores. As far as we know they are not treated, and ours have held up for many years now, although we are in a semi-arid climate. They work very well for us, and I think they look pretty good too. They will not last forever, but the price is right and we have the time to build them, and feel good about recycling.

--Sage

Robert Walton wrote:
What problems do you see with my idea for filling the bed and using
logs as sides?
How long are your arms?

Good point. 12" logs would take 2 feet from the 4 foot width. Back to
cedar slab wood.

Sage, are yours made from pallets? I don't quite understand that.

Rob
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