Easy Garden Bed

Apparently in the spring, I ordered some saffron bulbs. I had just missed the shipment period for them to be sent out, so they were put on automatic shipment for the fall. I had totally forgotten about them (and building the box I'd put them in) until they arrived. It's a good thing I already knew what I was going to do and just needed to buy the materials and put everything together. 

I purchased:

4 - 8' x 2" x 6" Pine Boards

2 - 8' x 1" x 2" Furring Strips (chicken deterrance)

1 Box of 3" Screws

4 (1 cu.ft.) Bags of Top Soil

2 (1 cu. ft.) Bags of Cypress Mulch

Tools and other materials I had:

Drill

Assorted 2" x 6" Boards and Other Scrap Wood

Newspapers and Cardboard

The 8' boards fit perfectly next to my walkway, so all I needed to do was screw them all together.

I had some perfectly sized scrap wood laying around that I used for the ends. At this stage the top boards are just sitting on the bottom ones. 

Top and bottom pieces were then secured together on the inside with scrap wood. Newspapers and cardboard were also placed at the bottom to create a barrier. 

If you're looking to plant edibles in the bed, I wouldn't recommend using cardboard that has a lot of print or color on it. You never know what kind of chemicals can be lurking in those inks, so stick with the regular brown cardboard. Same goes with newspapers - try to use as little colored paper as you can and forgo the shiny pages. Even though it's at the bottom, some roots may be able to eventually reach down there.

Dirt added, ready for weed block fabric on top

Mulch added and now the bed is just about finished!

I have chickens, so the furring strips are to somewhat prevent them from digging in the bed until I put some wire mesh up.

Now all that is left to do is to cut some holes in the fabric and bury some saffron bulbs!