How To Floor A Elevated Raised Garden Bed

elevated raised bed garden with leafy vegetables

While I love the fresh veggies we get from our garden every year, I was not thrilled about the amount we were losing to rabbits, deer, and other critters who were helping themselves to the fruits of my hard work! I began looking at my local garden supply stores for a solution and came across a great idea – an elevated garden bed. This takes the idea of a raised garden bed one step further and puts it at waist level. Not only does this deter rabbits, deer, and the like, it also makes weeding a snap as you don't have to bend over.

I found this VegTrug elevated bed at a local store and fell in love. When I showed Jay, he winced at the price and assured me he could build me a bigger one for a fraction of the cost.

expensive vegtrug elevated bed at store

We headed to Home Depot where we bought everything we needed for the project. We got:

Twenty 2″x 4″x 8′ cedar boards

One 1″ x 2″ x 8′ cedar board

A box of 2 1/2″ screws

We had the following already at home:

A miter saw (If you are not able to cut your wood, a Home Depot employee will be able to cut them to the needed sizes)

A drill and drill bits

A tape measure

supplies needed to build raised garden bed - boards, hardware

Here is how Jay went about building the elevated bed:

1) Cut the 2′ x 4′ pieces (or have them cut) to the following sizes

8 pieces cut to 3 feet, 11.75 inches (long side bed pieces)
8 pieces cut to 3 feet, 4 inches (short side bed pieces)
4 pieces cut to 36 inches (long leg pieces)
4 pieces cut to 23 inches (top short leg pieces)
4 pieces cut to 9.25 inches (bottom short leg pieces)
2 pieces cut to 36.75 inches (leg supports)

Jay stacked the boards according to size to keep them straight.

different sized boards to build raised garden bed

2) Begin with the legs of the bed. Screw together the long leg pieces and short leg pieces so that they are flush on one end. You should end up with four legs.

boards nailed together to make an h

3) Take two of the completed legs and fasten them to one of the support leg boards. Repeat with the other two legs.

4) Attach the bottom short leg pieces just below the support board and screw into place on both sets of legs. drill laying on boards

5) Stand the legs up so that they form H's with the cross piece toward the top. Take a long side bed piece and use it to connect the legs together as shown in the picture. Repeat all the way around the bed.

elevated garden bed frame upside down

6) Continue building the sides of the bed by placing the remaining side pieces around the outside of the bed.

elevated garden bed with one wall completed

wood elevated garden bed with four walls completed

7) Once the sides are built, screw the 1″ x 2″ piece along the inside, bottom of the sides to form a lip which will act as a base for the bottom.

8) Cut the remaining pieces to fit inside the bed and form the floor. The measurements do not have to be exact – small gaps will allow water to flow through.

boards laid out

completed wood elevated garden bed

And voila!! You now have an elevated garden.

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drill laying on wood and elevated garden bed made of wood with vegetables growing

Maureen Fitzgerald is a Milwaukee, Wisconsin freelance writer, social media marketer, community manager, and brand enthusiast. She helps brands reach more potential customers through targeted consultation sessions, press coverage, product reviews and campaigns both at WisconsinMommy.com and by leveraging her blogger network, the Wisconsin Mom Squad.