Today I made a raised bed garden for the front of my West Philadelphia row house. The front of the house faces south so it will get good light!
Yesterday was the trip to Home Depot for supplies.
Materials on the back deck ready to go.
Four sides constructed.
Tacking down galvanized roofing on the back sides.
The sides look like this on the side that faces out.
Four sides connected.
Bench seating installed.
Corners drilled and receiver pipes installed for hoops.
Closeup of a corner.
Hoops installed for shadecloth or clear plastic sheeting, depending on season.
The center bar is held on with stainless U-bolts.
The raised bed measures approximately 4’x4’x26” tall. If anyone wants to replicate this, the materials I used were:
7, 8’ long pressure treated 2x4’s, cut into:
- 8, 4’ sections (horizontal part of frames)
- 12, 19” sections (vertical part of frames)
- 2, 26” sections cut in half longitudinally (inside corner supports/rabbets)
2, 8’ long pressure treated 2x6’s, cut into:
- 2, 54” sections (bench top)
- 2, 40” sections (bench top)
2, 8’ long corrugated galvanized roofing panels (26” wide), cut into:
- 2, 42” sections (short sides)
- 2, 44.5” sections (long sides)
2.5” decking screws
1.25” roofing screws
1, 12’, 3/4” inner diameter PVC pipe, cut into:
- 4, 2’ lengths (receiver pipes)
- 1, 4’ length (center support)
2, 10’ 1/2” inner diameter PVC pipes (hoops)
4 stainless steel U bolts
Tools I used were:
jig saw (chop saw would have been better but don’t have one)
drill & drill bits (so wood wouldn’t split)
impact driver
tape measure
sharpie marker
tin snips
I built the box in the back yard but I will take the top off and detach all 4 sides and move it to a concrete pad in the front yard (south side of the house) after I get the soil. I’ll be lining the box with a strong garden fabric to keep the soil in. The soil will not be in contact with the pressure treated lumber because of the galvanized walls. I didn’t want to contaminate the soil with the wood treatment, but I still wanted the box to last more than a few years.
It takes about a cubic yard of soil to fill it, which is an order of magnitude cheaper to buy at a local farm than at a big box store. Also, I was excited to have a compost delivery last week. We subscribe to a compost bucket pickup once a week, and this delivery is the fruit of our labor. I’ll be mixing that in with the soil before we plant.
We are thinking tomatoes and peppers will do well in the new garden.
EDIT: I tested out the canopy today and 3 hoops works better than 2 hoops with a crossbeam. I can still add a crossbeam if I need it.
she came ripping into the house, up and down the stairs, around and around until she calmed down. 
Danny 
imagine when you forget.