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Had a neighbor tell me I was overthinking my raised beds

Last Saturday I was out leveling the ground for a new 4x8 raised bed, taking my time with a string level and checking everything twice. My neighbor Bob walked over and said he just throws his together on the grass, fills them with dirt, and has never had a problem in 10 years. Now I'm sitting here wondering if I'm wasting hours on prep that doesn't really matter versus maybe ending up with a crooked bed that shifts after a heavy rain. I've seen some folks online swear by concrete blocks for a solid base, but Bob's got tomatoes coming out his ears every August. What do you all do - take the time to level and prep, or just build and go? Trying to figure out if I should start over or just keep going.

2 comments

2 Comments

grace5084d ago

Honestly, doesn't this remind you of how some people are just natural "good enough" folks while others of us have to triple check everything? It's like my buddy who can throw together a shelf from a sketchy Pinterest pic and it stays up for years, but if I don't measure twice and use a level, it's warped and wobbling within a week. Bob's a "just wing it" person and it works for him, but you're probably a "measure it twice" person. Tbh, if leveling and prep makes you feel solid about your bed, then that's worth more than saving an hour. Ngl, a crooked bed that settles weird would drive you nuts every time you look at it, so keep going your way.

wilson.kelly4d ago

Yeah totally, it's like some people have a built in level or something. I'm definitely in the measure it twice camp, but I've also learned that sometimes you just gotta trust the process even if it's not perfect. Idk, maybe it's just me but I feel like that "good enough" thing is a skill you can kind of learn over time, but it takes a lot of trial and error. If your buddy's shelf stays up for years, he probably just got lucky enough that his first few tries worked out and he got confident from there.