ZBlogH

Introduction

Raised Stone Garden Beds Overview

Raised bed and garden

Family Handyman

The stone wall and flagstone path blend perfectly into a lush garden setting.

Natural stone

Family Handyman

The rough, randomly stacked stone softens with time and weathering, growing more attractive as it ages.

If one of your family members loves plants and flowers, why not build this raised garden bed? It not only allows you to get just the right soil mix for healthy plants but also reduces back strain, because you don’t have to bend over so far to tend it. The natural stone walls also look great and are easy to build.

In this project, we’ll show you the easiest, most time-efficient way to build a stone planter that will last for decades. We’ll also offer tips for sorting and placing stones so you end up with great-looking stonework. You can use these techniques to build a raised garden bed of any shape and size.

This project doesn’t require any special skills, but it does require a bit of muscle to lift the stones. The only specialty tool you’ll need is a diamond blade (sold at home centers) in your circular saw. Our 4-ft. x 16-ft. planter took two of us about 16 hours to complete.

Don’t know where to start planning your flower beds? Check out options for a free flower bed planner here.

Plan your raised garden bed

Start by marking the planter outline on the ground, using a rope or garden hose. Dry-stacked walls like this are limited to 3 ft. in height or they could tip over. Call to have underground utilities marked in your yard before you dig and before you have materials delivered, in case you have to move your wall location. The North American One-Call Referral System number is 811.

Once you determine the shape and size of the structure, you can order the materials. Take your dimensions with you to the stone supplier, who can help determine the quantities of stone, pea gravel, landscape fabric and topsoil you’ll need. Order 10 percent extra stone so you have plenty to choose from. You can always use leftovers for borders around gardens.

Browse suppliers to find a stone you like (selections are often regional). Costs vary a lot among stone types. We used a stone called weathered Chilton. We needed three tons of the stone, a yard of pea gravel and three yards of topsoil. You can use a different (and less expensive) stone, as long as it’s relatively flat on the top and bottom. The more flat-surfaced and square the stones are, the easier they are to stack. The techniques we show won’t work for rounded fieldstone. You can buy capstone, which is a special stone for the top course, or use the same stone as for the rest of the planter.

When you’re ordering materials, ask about delivery fees and forklift services. It’s worth the extra forklift charge to have the materials placed right next to the work area. Trust me on this. Our driver couldn’t get his forklift to the backyard at our location, so we had to move everything by wheelbarrow (it took more than 50 trips!).

Raised Bed Details

Family Handyman

Build the wall on a gravel base for stability and drainage, and cover the back with landscape fabric and more gravel before filling in the garden bed with soil.

Sort stones by size

To make placing stones easier, first arrange them into groups based on similar thicknesses and lengths. As you sort them, set aside nice-looking stones to use as capstones. Keep their thicknesses within a 1/4-in. variation. We set aside 3-1/4-in.- to 3-1/2- in.-thick stones for our capstones.

Spread out the stones on tarps, rather than stacking them, if you have room. It’ll save you from digging through the piles later to find the stones you want.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7p63MoqOyoJGjsbq5wKdlnKedZL2zu8memq1nk6S7tMDRrpqtZZFiv6K10p6bZqukpLumecaaqZ2dnmKvprCO