Top 10 Best Raised Garden Beds in the UK 2021 (VegTrug, Vegepod and More)

Raised beds are great tools for growing a wide variety of plants without the worry of what's going on under your garden's surface. To ensure you find the right bed for your intended plants, we've put together a simple yet informative buying guide of the hottest tips and tricks to make your choice between the best 10 an easy affair. 

One of the most influential aspects when it comes to a raised bed is the material that it's constructed from. Wood is widely considered the best material for beds as it's incredibly durable, looks great and suits the natural vibe of a garden perfectly. 

Look for timber that has been treated and is thick enough (at least 3 cm thick) to withstand the pressure that your plants and soil will put on it. Be sure to consider timber from sustainable sources if you're after the most environmentally-friendly bed you can get. 

Plastic beds are very versatile pieces of kit; self-watering planters, beds with legs and just about every other variation has been created in plastic. Metal beds are the least popular of the three materials for their unnatural look and lack of flair in design. Although with zero chance of rotting or breaking, there's no denying metal takes the cake on longevity. 

Choosing whether you want your bed to be raised up to somewhere near waist height or down on ground level is an important decision to make. Higher beds give people who struggle to work their green-thumb magic at floor level the chance to garden without fear of putting their back out. 

Having your plants on legs also helps to minimise the chance of any pesky snails and bugs from making their way up through the soil or over your bed's walls and into your precious plants. Their downside is they're often much smaller when compared to the sizes that ground-level raised beds can be produced at. 

Ground-level raised beds give maximum growing potential. Due to their often basic designs, you'll often be able to choose from a wide range of sizes, but more on that soon. If your garden's soil is already workable, then a ground-level bed could be a good idea as your deeply-rooted winter veg will benefit from it. 

If you've already marked out the perfect spot in the garden for your raised bed – with very little leeway in terms of available space – then this point will matter to you. Unfortunately, not all brands are very forthcoming when it comes to offering a selection of sizes, but all is not lost. 

You'll find the most scope will be offered from ground-level beds, with some even being made to order online and taking anywhere from 4 to 10 days to arrive. This build time may seem strange at first, but with a healthy choice of up to 10 varying heights and overall sizes, this is a clever way of doing online shopping. 

Typically, beds with legs are a lot less likely to give you a choice of sizes, with many offering just the one. However, this certainly isn't a given, as some larger brands stock enough products to make it viable to offer a few sizes of planters. Just remember to measure up and check the dimensions before you buy. 

Without an adequate height, your veg will struggle to benefit from the endless list of why raised beds are good for growing in the first place. One big one is promoting warmer soil in spring, which in turn, encourages your plants to grow quicker and stronger from their first days of life. 

The expert-recommended height for raised beds grown on soil is at least 15 cm but preferably around 20-30 cm. If you're looking to place a ground-level bed over a hard surface, you'll need to up the ante to at least 45 cm to ensure your plants' roots have enough room to grow. 

For beds with legs, a height of 15 cm is essential for short-root plants like strawberries, while other plants like asparagus, beans and parsnips will require a height of 60 cm. So, be sure to factor in where your bed will go and the plants you intend to grow in it and then shop the height accordingly. 

While the home DIYers with every tool in the shed will be scoffing at this point, for the less-than-savvy folk, this is a crucial consideration. The internet is rife with many different types of raised beds, meaning the way in which they assemble is just as vast. 

If you're one of the many who gets a hesitant lump in the throat at the very thought of furniture that requires time, patience and a little DIY skill to build, then be on the lookout for a raised bed that comes fully assembled so you can take it straight out of the pack and place it in your garden. 

Other notably easy types of assembly include part-assembled 'slot-in-place' beds. This basically means that, although you'll be required to do a little work, for the most part, it'll be a case of simply placing each piece into the next to get the job done. 

Pertaining toward raised beds with legs specifically, a dedicated storage shelf and/or wheels are two features that make your growing experience easier. Often included along the entire width of the bed and sitting just below it, shelves can provide easy access to gardening essentials like spades, forks, gloves and watering cans.

Wheels, meanwhile, allow people with awkward sunlight times to swiftly wheel their planter over to the other side of the patio for an afternoon of sun-basking. Wheels are always featured in a pair on one side, so you should check for a sturdy handle on the opposite side to make it easy to lift and wheel along. 

This top 10 of the best raised beds for your garden is guaranteed to have something suitable for all levels of home-growing expertise. Including metal, plastic and wooden beds with almost every size and type there is, we think this is the most definitive list you'll find online today and tomorrow. 

Putting the time into your garden is a rewarding and therapeutic way of gaining a connection to nature while also reaping the home-grown rewards. We've compiled the 10 best small greenhouses, watering cans and gardening gloves to enhance your plants beyond your wildest green-thumbed dreams. 

How good is the feeling of watching your beloved produce grow and grow to the point where you get to eat it? We think it's pretty great and we're guessing you do too. So whether you're just starting out or you're a seasoned gardening extraordinaire, here's hoping this guide and your new raised bed will help your plants thrive. 

Author: Connor Macanally