Raised Bed Gardens Made From Plastic Barrels

Raised Bed Gardens Made From Plastic Barrels CROPS Miscellaneous “Old 55-gal plastic barrels cut in half lengthwise can be used to make inexpensive raised garden beds They’re surprisingly attractive and offer a lot of benefits over conventional raised wood beds ” says Gordon Mariner Goodlettsville Tenn He screws the half barrels onto 3-ft tall wooden frames made from 2 by 6 boards There are 8 half-barrels lined up in 2 side by side rows Mariner attached 2 by 6 boards across the tops of both frames and also above the barrels where they’re joined together to keep everything stable He also drilled drain holes in the bottom of each barrel Mariner also made a handy roll-up tarp system over the raised garden beds which his wife uses to protect plants during the cold winter months “My wife just turns a crank to roll the tarp up or down ” says Mariner “She’s able to grow crops outdoors all winter long such as tomatoes beans peas strawberries and herbs ” The roll-up tarp is attached to a horizontal metal pipe which extends about 3 ft above a 16-ft long wooden frame made from 2 by 6 boards The pipe runs through 2 by 6’s bolted vertically to each end of the frame The tarp is screwed to a thin metal strap that screws onto the pipe with a crank bolted to one end of the pipe Both ends of the frame are closed off by triangle-shaped pieces of tarp “We usually keep the tarp up during the summer but during cool months we bring it down at night ” says Mariner Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Gordon Mariner 1102 Cartwright Cr N Goodlettsville Tenn 37072 ph 615 477-8099

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