Incorporating Raised Plant Beds Into Your Landscape Design in McFarland, WI

Well-planned, multi-dimensional landscapes are eye-catching. Here’s how incorporating raised plant beds into your landscape design in McFarland, WI, will add interest and variety and make the best use of your available space.

What Is a Multi-dimensional Landscape?

Undulating or sloped landscapes offer opportunity for creating a layered look. However, even if your landscape is pancake-flat, you can still achieve an interesting dimensional look by using raised plant beds and other elevated features.

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Enhancing Your Landscape with Raised Plant Beds

A raised plant bed can be built to suit your architectural style using natural stone, concrete wall blocks, rot-resistant landscaping timbers, corrugated metal, or bricks. It can become a special destination, especially if it is filled with herbs and vegetables situated next to an outdoor kitchen or brightens up a dull corner with seasonal color. Even in the off season, it can off visual interest by featuring holiday ornaments and boughs of evergreens.

The size of your raised planting bed depends on its intended use and its location. Since raised beds don’t require a foundation or any special structural support, they can be placed anywhere, but size matters. Planting beds used to grow food will need to be large enough to grow a variety of vegetables, while planting beds used for decorative purposes can be tucked into any spot that needs a pop of color. 

While many raised plant beds are rectangular or square, using masonry opens up options. Raised beds can be round, oval, tucked into a corner of your backyard, or follow the contours of a retaining wall.

You can create a beautiful, tidy gardening area using a series of planting beds. Raised beds contain soil, keep pests out of your produce or flowers, and they can be constructed with built-in irrigation systems to simplify gardening.

A raised plant bed can save your back and your knees if you love to garden. It can also do double duty as a seat wall if it is a sturdy mortared wall made using natural stone or concrete blocks with an attractive stone veneer, and if it features a spacious ledge for comfortable sitting.  

Pollinator gardens are a hot trend in landscaping. However, you may not want your entire landscape to look like a woodland meadow. Contain a pollinator garden in a raised bed and enjoy knowing you’re doing something positive for your local bees and butterflies while maintaining an attractive landscape.

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Tips for Constructing a Raised Plant Bed

Your raised planting bed needs to be designed with easy access to the entire planting area. Decide whether you want to remain in one place and easily reach all plants on the opposite side, or have a wider plant bed that lets you walk all the way around.

If the plant bed is located in a spot that gets all day sun, you may want to consider adding a narrow pergola to provide some shade for your plants. This way, plants won’t get sunbaked, you can plant climbing vines on the pergola, and it’s also an opportunity to add yet another layer to your multidimensional landscape!

Tiered planting beds are another option for small spaces. Each tier is progressively smaller toward the top, like a pyramid. Put sun-loving, hardy plants up top and thirsty plants toward the bottom. This is a beautiful focal point suitable for the front entry or as a kitchen garden near the patio.