Building a Raised Bed with Sleepers

If you're a keen gardener, you will know just how difficult it can be to grow a wide variety of plants and flowers in the same soil type. An excellent way to diversify your garden in this respect is to build raised beds, allowing you to vary the types of soil to exactly suit what it is you wish to grow.

Raised beds help to provide the best growing conditions, as well as enhancing root health and improving drainage. One of the best ways to build raised beds in your garden is with the use of railway sleepers; in this edition of the Greengates Builders Merchants blog, we'll guide you through the process.

This guide shows you how to build a square raised bed with the sleepers available from Greengates, each of which measures 2.4m in length. You can of course cut the sleepers to different lengths to create different shapes but the basic principles outlined in this guide remain the same. Our sleepers are made from the finest timber which has been green-treated, a chemical process that dramatically extends their durability and makes them extremely resistant to water damage and rotting. 

Start by laying four sleepers in a square shape on grass, concrete or earth, with the narrowest sides touching the ground. Attach the sleepers together at each corner with 150mm timber screws. This will be your first layer.

Though you can use this single layer as a raised bed, it will be more effective (as well as more visually appealing) if you add a second layer. Lay a further four sleepers on top of the box you have made; you should overlap the joins in a similar manner to bricklaying. Use more 150mm timber screws to create a second box.

You now need to attach the layers together. To do this, use timber screws of 275mm in length and drill down from the top. Alternatively, you could use brackets to attach the layers. If you want to add further layers, simply repeat the above steps.

You can now line the inside of your raised bed with weed control fabric to ensure that any weed growth is suppressed. Before filling the bed with your choice of compost, soil or manure, it is recommended that cobbles are placed in the bottom to further improve drainage. A final layer of topsoil or bark chippings will help to retain moisture.

Check out THIS edition of the Greengates blog to discover more creative ways to use timber sleepers in your garden!