Agricultural News
Noble Foundation Offers New, Free Book For Easy Access Raised Garden Beds
Thu, 04 Jun 2015 17:38:06 CDT
No more stooping or bending down to garden. The Noble Foundation Easy Access Raised Garden Bed allows gardeners to tend their garden standing up.
In 2006, Noble Foundation Soils and Crops Consultant Steve Upson began exploring design options for a standing position raised bed. Upson's design needed to meet as many of the following criteria as possible:
-- Lower construction cost compared to similar sized beds.
-- Utilize readily available construction materials.
-- Incorporate used or discarded materials to reduce cost.
-- Easily modified to accommodate the height requirements of young and old.
-- Ergonomically friendly.
-- Free standing so does not require anchoring in soil.
-- Not more than 40 inches wide to enable access to the middle of the bed without reaching.
-- Easily fitted with options such as crop trellising, shading and a miniature greenhouse covering.
After considering several designs, Upson settled on one that utilizes discarded truck (tractor-trailer) tires to create an elevated base, which supports a 2-inch by 4-inch lumber framed bed lined with corrugated sheet metal. "I have been asked many times to design a higher bed," Upson said, "and this type of raised bed offers the best of all the criteria."
When filled with soil, the tires create a strong, inexpensive base that does not require anchoring due to its large mass. The unique shape of the base imparted by the round shape of the tires enables the gardener to place one foot under the bed while standing at the side of the bed, effectively reducing stress on the lower back.
The most commonly available size of truck tire (as determined by a survey of discarded tires at a local truck stop in Ardmore, Oklahoma) has a diameter of 40 inches, ideal for the desired bed width.
This unique design can be used to construct a bed of any length and up to 35 inches in height. The height can be lowered to accommodate shorter gardeners by simply reducing the length of the framing material. The bed's heavy duty construction accommodates the use of a soil-based growing medium. The bed will also support different sizes of containers for those interested in container production.
To top off the bed, a protective cover was designed that enables the gardener to extend the growing season and protect plants from inclement weather. "We believe the name 'Easy Access Raised Bed' best describes the bed for its ease of access and user-friendly characteristics," Upson said. "It's also easy on the pocket book."
The cost of the materials to construct at 10-foot-long-by-40-inch-wide-by-35-inch-high bed is $246. To construct a miniature tunnel cover for the bed is $80.
Construction plans for the Noble Foundation Easy Access Raised Garden Bed are available at no cost by clicking here.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI
Top Agricultural News
More Headlines...
