If you saw my post from 2021, you will remember my affordable and DIY alternative to those fancy cedar garden beds. I was so happy with my previous creation, that I decided to do an entire vegetable garden upgrade and add some more beds and put up a more permanent fence.
The TL;DR:
Vegetable Garden Upgrade Back to Basics
I’ll be honest, when I went back to my original beds from last year, I have no idea why I measured the depth of each bed less than 36″. To make things easier, I decided to go with 36″ because it was half a full board. Building more beds behind my original beds was super simple and only took 3 cedar boards per bed. I also decided to shore things up a bit more and add 24″ stakes as the main supports and one in the middle of the front boards to prevent warping.
No More Free Lunch
I love where we live, especially the wildlife that pass through our property. I don’t love how they often think of my property as an all-you-can-eat buffet. Our biggest offenders are deer, rabbits, and gophers. Now that I think I have the final footprint of my vegetable garden mapped out, I am ready for a more permanent fence.
I put together a total of 8 garden beds, with some room for 2 more beds at the back for another year (I just ran out of time ahead of the growing season!). To solve for the gopher problem, I committed to digging a 24″ trench around the entire garden area. Why 2 feet? From what I’ve read online, 18″-36″ is the key depth to keep those pesky critters from digging into the garden.
I purchased this galvenized fencing to put in the trench. I went with a 4-foot tall fence so that some stuck up above ground to dissuade any gophers that are inclined to climb and stop bunnies from nibbling their way in. This was a critical step in my vegetable garden upgrade. There is nothing worse than watching , waiting, and tending to the garden only to have it completely sabotaged by some furry friends who don’t even have the decency to finish eating that squash.
Let me tell you, getting this fence into the ground? This was the hardest part. And my soil is sand. But when I get an idea in my head, I go all out. I will NOT lose this game to some furry residents. I also had to contend with tree roots. Some of these roots were easy to remove with hand clippers, others required the Sawzall. But boy, oh boy, I was getting a work out removing some of the heftier roots by the biggest stump. It was completely unavoidable. This is the sunniest spot on the property where I can put a garden and I was all in on this vegetable garden upgrade.
The Deer Fence
From there, keeping the deer out was relatively simple! These green t-posts were perfect for the job. Because this fence is for keeping visitors out, I installed each post with the studs pointing out. Each post is also 2-feet below ground, leaving me with a 4-foot high fence. A simple deer barrier was hung on the posts. The barrier came as an 8-foot wide roll, so I just doubled up the fencing as I went around the garden.
The Final Steps in the Vegetable Garden Upgrade
To get in and out of the garden with ease, I made a simple door by attaching the end of the barrier to a garden stake. This attached to the middle post with clips. You could get an extra t-post and make an actual doorway, but I’m not fussy and the deer don’t have that kind of dexterity!
Voila! My vegetable garden upgrade is complete. Just in time to plant the carrots, too.
What if I don’t have all of these power tools?
Come back next week!
[…] simple garden beds I made the first year of my garden in it’s current location. In 2022, I expanded the veggie garden even more and really gave it an upgrade. Yes, I have some fancy tools, but you don’t need […]