When spring arrives, it's time to prepare our growing spaces for the new season. After three years of service, our elevated garden beds were due for some TLC. Join us as we refresh our cedar planter boxes, update our irrigation system, and prepare our growing space for another productive season.

Elevated Beds: The Perfect Solution for Edibles

Our "protégé garden" is dedicated to growing edibles in a beautiful, accessible way. While we primarily focus on ornamental gardening throughout our Zone 6A landscape in upstate New York, these elevated beds from Gardener's Supply Company provide the perfect dedicated space for growing vegetables, fruits, and herbs.

These cedar raised beds offer several advantages:

• Their elevated height eliminates bending and stooping
• The contained growing environment gives us better control over soil quality
• Their location near our terrace makes harvesting convenient
• The integrated trellises provide vertical growing space

After three full seasons of exposure to sun, rain, and snow, these beautiful beds needed some maintenance to ensure they remain in top condition for years to come.

Our Three-Part Refresh Plan

1. Refinishing the Cedar

The cedar construction of these beds provides natural resistance to rot and insects, but the finish had begun to fade, particularly on the top edges and front faces most exposed to the elements. Originally, we applied three coats of Vermont Natural Coatings PolyWhey stain in Charcoal, which we chose because:

• It's food-grade safe, essential for edible gardens
• It provides UV protection for the wood
• It enhances the natural beauty of the cedar while giving it a contemporary look
• It's environmentally friendly with low VOCs

For our refresh, we applied two additional coats of the same stain, focusing on the areas showing the most wear. The result is a like-new appearance that will extend the life of our beds for several more seasons.

Tip: When staining raised beds for edibles, always choose a food-safe finish that won't leach chemicals into your growing medium.

2. Revamping Our Irrigation Approach

Last season, we experimented with grid-style irrigation systems in these beds, but they proved problematic:

• They delivered too much water, despite adjustments to timing and pressure
• The fixed grid pattern limited our planting flexibility
• The system was difficult to fine-tune for different crop needs

This year, we're returning to a drip irrigation approach that's proven more reliable throughout the rest of our garden. We removed the grid system completely and will install targeted drip lines as we plant.

One lesson we've learned about irrigation: there's no universal solution. As we mentioned, "What fits your garden is what's going to work for you." The right watering solution depends on:

• Your local climate and rainfall patterns
• The specific needs of your plants
• Your soil composition
• Sun exposure in your garden

Our beds are connected to a larger irrigation system that runs throughout our garden. To prepare for this season, we also took the time to run tubing up to our Pascal urns before filling them with soil—a smart move that saves the hassle of trying to thread irrigation lines through planted containers later.

3. Refreshing the Soil

After a season of growing heavy feeders like tomatoes, eggplants, and potatoes, our soil needed rejuvenation. We:

1. Removed old plant material and volunteer weeds
2. Pruned back the strawberry plants that survived the winter
3. Topped up the beds with fresh potting soil
4. Added some nutrient-rich raised bed mix to replenish depleted nutrients

For elevated beds, soil selection is particularly important. We use Coast of Maine Bar Harbor Blend potting soil rather than standard garden soil or raised bed mix alone because:

• It's lighter weight, which is important for the structural integrity of elevated beds
• It offers excellent drainage while retaining adequate moisture
• It's organic and safe for edibles
• It provides good aeration for root development

We supplemented with some Coast of Maine Castine Blend raised bed mix, which is slightly heavier but more nutrient-dense, to give a boost to the areas where we'll be planting heavy feeders again.

Adding the Finishing Touches

Refreshing Metal Elements

The black metal trellises and corner brackets provide both structural support and design interest to our elevated beds. After three seasons, they needed refreshing as well.

We used matte black spray paint specifically formulated for metal to:

• Cover any rust spots that had developed
• Restore the uniform appearance
• Protect the metal from further weather damage

Tip: When spray painting near your garden beds, be sure to thoroughly cover the soil and surrounding plants to prevent overspray contamination.

Organizing Garden Tools

To complete our refresh, we reinstalled our garden "mailboxes"—small tool storage containers that mount directly to the sides of our raised beds. These provide convenient storage for:

• Hand pruners
• Garden gloves
• Twine and plant ties
• Small garden stakes

Having these tools at arm's reach makes maintenance and harvesting much more efficient throughout the growing season.

Planning This Season's Edibles

With our beds refreshed and ready, we're excited about this year's planting plans:

• We've already sown rows of Ronde de Paris carrots, a round variety perfect for container growing
• Our existing strawberry plants will be supplemented with additional plants to create a productive border
• The central areas will feature a mix of edibles and ornamentals
• We'll use the trellises for vertical crops, possibly incorporating both ornamental and edible vines
• Herbs and edible flowers will be integrated for beauty and functionality

We're particularly excited about combining edibles with ornamentals this year. Mixing plants like basil with flowering annuals such as calibrachoa (Superbells) creates both visual interest and practical harvests.

Lessons Learned

Refreshing our elevated beds has reinforced several valuable gardening lessons:

1. Annual maintenance extends longevity - A little attention each year prevents major repairs later
2. Be flexible with irrigation - Don't hesitate to change systems that aren't working optimally
3. Spring preparation pays dividends - Taking time now for maintenance means less work during the busy growing season
4. Quality materials matter - Our initial investment in cedar beds and good stain has resulted in durable, attractive garden features

Looking Forward

With our beds refreshed, soil amended, and early seeds planted, we're eagerly awaiting the warmer days ahead when we can fully plant our edible garden. The combination of April showers and these preparation steps sets us up for a successful growing season.

Whether you're considering adding elevated beds to your garden or refreshing existing ones, we hope our experience provides some helpful guidance. These accessible growing spaces have become one of our favorite garden features, providing both beauty and bounty throughout the growing season.

Thanks for growing with us!