Raised Beds and Matching Pool Shed

7 Materials
$120
6 Hours
Medium
In an effort to be more earth friendly, our goal was to garden as much as possible (in our already full yard) and make it look good, too. Last spring we added a wooden cover for our pool equipment. Initially we added it for aesthetic purposes but realized how much sun the equipment gets (we're in TX!) and how hard that is on the system - so turned out to be very functional. After a few years of so so crops in the ground (it's red clay), we decided that raised beds were the way to go and wanted them to match the pool shed.
Before you get started the first step is to collect lawn trimmings and branches - this is what will fill the bottom half of your raised beds...we collected for an entire season to fill all of these beds. This will compost over time and save you alot of money on soil/compost.


Decide what dimensions your raised beds will be. Ours vary in width and length but they are all 2.5 feet tall. We used 2x4's for all of the frame and supports.
Here you can see we added a lot of support to the bottom and diagonal supports in the cornerrs of the raised beds - these are quite heavy once you get them filled. Be sure to fill them where they will be for a while...because you will have to empty them to move them much...
We painted the frame of the beds and pool shed a pewter in a heavy duty protectant recommended for decks(Behr Premium Plus Ultra Stain blocking paint and primer in one). It took two coats to get a nice even finish. After doing this a few times, we started doing all the painting prior to assembly. Because the beds are so big...it's hard to move to a comfortable position - you spend a lot of time on the ground or bent over.
The side slatts are 5/8 inch thick and 5 1/2 inch wide red cedar fence pickets. This saved money and are light weight. We then lined the sides with medium weight plastic, comes in a roll at your local hardware store. We stapled the plastic to the sides to protect the wood. We also wrapped each bottom support with plastic. Then we added chicken wire to the bottom of each bed to hold in the sticks/soil but provide good drainage. All this was installed with a heavy duty staple gun. The slats were treated with a stain and polyurethane sealant in one, (Minwax) in the color Walnut.
Here's a view of the other side of the pool shed, complete with rain barrel and more raised beds in the dirveway.
Pool Equipment Cover
The pool equipment cover is constructed of all wood with metal supports that are buried in the ground on each corner. The top/roof of the pool shed is corrugated steel - affordable, sturdy and modern.
The driveway beds take up none of the driveway space but add a really cool look to our driveway. Not to mention add a lot of gardening space that gets full sun most of the day.
Between garage doors we added this smaller one versus having a mismatched pot.. The raised beds are a great additional to our driveway and yard.
The driveway beds take up none of the driveway space but add a really cool look to our driveway. Not to mention add a lot of gardening space that gets full sun most of the day.
Between garage doors we added this smaller one versus having a mismatched pot.. The raised beds are a great additional to our driveway and yard.
Here are the latest beds we have added in the backyard - they are 4 feet wide and 8 feet long. We are getting ready for our fall crop and the swiss chard and kale are doing awesome! Also tried asparagus, which has to grow for a full year and then harvested in year two...so excited for next year!


Note: cost and time estimates are for 1 raised bed...not all of themicon
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  • Rachelle Rachelle on Apr 14, 2018

    We need something to out all our "pool toys", covers, etc in. I think something like this would work prefect! I've been looking at buying deck storage bins, the size we would need is around $200. Can we build this for under that?

  • Janet Janet on Jul 07, 2018

    I love this idea - especially having the pool shed (which I need) to match. Did you have printedplans for this that you followed or just figured it out yourself? I'd love to do this in our yard.

  • Ari Driver Ari Driver on Aug 14, 2018

    Do you have step by step pics of attaching the side slats, lining with plastic and chicken wire? I got lost right after the frame was built.

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  • Julie Mullins Julie Mullins on Jan 28, 2018

    Good job I really like it. Lovery garden projects

  • Von Von on Oct 21, 2018

    I love your idea. I will be making these for next year. Yors look like a pro made them. Thank you

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