3 reasons NOT to buy metal raised garden beds

Hey there nature lovers, in today's video I share my top 3 reasons why I regret buying metal raised garden beds. I have my permaculture design certificate and a masters degree in sustainability and I still got sucked into the raised metal bed trend. As this channel is all about my eco endeavour and sharing best practices when it comes to permaculture and sustainable living, I figured I'd make a video offering up a different perspective for you to consider before you spend your hard earned cash on an expensive metal raised garden beds.

Almost ALL of the youtube videos about metal raised beds are giving you a biased opinion because the youtubers sharing that information are trying to sell you metal raised beds through affiliate programs, meaning they get money if you buy the raised beds through their link after their reviews.

I'm not against affiliate programs because I do think they are a great way to share the wealth. But I do believe that an unbiased perspective should be shared, and the influencers pushing consumerism through affiliate marketing are not sharing an unbiased opinion.

In my humble opinion, I believe influencers have a responsibility to be mindful of the environmental, social, and economical impacts of the products they are influencing others to buy.

I hope this information in this video can help you decide if buying a raised metal garden bed is the best choice for you.

[SannyAnnie]

As with any gardening project, experiences vary. You want a hoop structure for metal raised beds? Try four or six short lengths of rebar pounded into the soil next to the bed, then slip conduit/pipe over it and bend it in an arch - works great. An arched trellis over the top of my beds gave my tomatoes and cucurbits plenty of space to grow vertically. Don't like leaning on and over the beds to harvest and plant? I love being able to pull an outdoor chair next to the bed to do whatever I need to do. I didn't have the same experience as you did with superheated soil in my painted (color exterior, white interior) beds. My tomatoes, squash, eggplant, etc., gave bumper crops. Perhaps the white interior was reflective, or my lining the beds with surplus cardboard boxes helped insulate the soil and retain moisture. My soil does settle some from season to season, but that's a benefit! I'm able to mix fresh compost, peat, etc., into my beds to build up the soil level and the nutrients for each new season. Personally, I'm not physically able to build my own wooden beds, nor can I kneel on the ground to tend my garden. Sit on the ground to garden, as you demonstrate? Not going to happen. It's raised beds (to a height that I don't need to kneel - mine are 17 inches high) or no beds for me. And, like you, I'd much rather grow my own vegetables than purchase them. I don't disagree that the metal beds are more costly than the wood ones (assuming one already has all the tools and is able to find scrap wood and build one's own beds rather than purchase wood and hire someone to build them), but I was able to buy my metal beds at a great discount by purchasing in the off season. I was able to sit outside on the back steps and assemble them, no problem, then pull them into place. I wouldn't have been able to do that with wood beds. My opinion is not sponsored, doesn't contain affiliate links, and is not otherwise on behalf of any particular company. It's just my experience and circumstances, which differ from yours. I don't at all regret my purchase. I'm sorry that you do.

[hzkvjsl]

I have had these garden beds for 2 years now, and I love them . They are much cheaper to buy than wood and easy for this 68 year old woman to put together myself. I live in SW Florida, and I garden year-round, and I haven't had any issues with them. I have no regrets, and my garden looks esthetically pleasing. I have brought all of my own beds, and I don't sell them. To each is own.

[scottwinter]

Concrete blocks are the way to go. Cheaper than wood and lasts forever. You can stack another layer of blocks on top every 10 years or so to raise the bed height with time and save your back when you are older. The openings in the blocks can be used as either planters (I have strawberries in some and insect repelling flowers in others). You can also use some of the holes as places to secure hoops if you want to cover your plants. No real issue with chemical leaching on modern concrete blocks. (Cinder blocks used long ago would have been a different story.) Biggest downside is the labor involved in initially building them.

[AngryManSki]

These lower height planters should be all soil, no perma underneath. My gardening experience has taught me that plants need a minimum of 24 inches of soil. Right now you have maybe 6-8 inches which isn’t enough. I’d remove the wood underneath and fill it with compost. Since your summer is really dry, you will need to run the drip system around the edges. Lastly, you can make a hoop system from cow fencing or rebar and conduit since it’s galvanized. I honestly don’t think you set the beds up correctly considering your environment. If you build the hoop system, the mesh will help keep the sides cool. You can also paint the sides white to reflect the UV rays. It’s going to be more expensive to purchase Cedar (don’t use pressure treated wood) and build new boxes. It’s still early, fix them and I bet you will have a better experience. Oh, raise the ground with dirt or rocks so the beds will be higher.

[GardenMyselfHappy]

Thank you for your honest opinion. Not being scripted is also appreciated as a clear conversation. I get everyone has opinions. And budgets so it's good to hear negatives as well.

[hildachacon]

I love my Vego beds. My tomato plants, onions & peppers do so well in them. I do not regret them here in zone 8 in Texas. I will not to back to wood raised beds.

[MyFiddlePlayer]

Hot tip for all gardeners: buy a sturdy plastic stool so that you don't have to squat, kneel, bend over, or sit on the side of your garden bed. Just about the best $10 you can spend on your garden.

[jandjhirst]

One easy thing you can do is just pile up woodchips against the bed on the outside. I do this in the winter to keep them warm, and I've done it in the summer to keep them cooler. Since they're metal the woodchips won't hurt them.

[Beverly-ez]

I watch quite a few gardening channels. One thing I would like to see is the general location of the person teaching in the information. It makes a difference.

[erikahuxley]

Haven't been a problem, my tomato and pepper grows great in them. Awesome harvest with photos to prove it. I'm more northern side, but we get to high 80s to low 90s here in the summer. I enjoy hand watering daily which is probably redundant, I do not like automated gardening where I have no interaction. I do add compost every fall to my beds as a replenishment and then cover it with a few inches of leaves which breaks down over the winter, this amount of organic matter helps with water retention.

The beds I bought on Amazon in 2020 were 5x2.8' for $90. They're still holding up great four years now. I found a 6x3' one for $53 just now which is even cheaper. Not sure the need for spending $300 for one. I don't like buying beds that are wider than 3ft because it's hard to reach to the other side. Also the bigger they are the more issue with flexing and bowing, hence I like these round beds that are no more than 3ft wide. Wood beds are just as expensive imo, in fact sometimes more expensive because of increased cost of lumber.

You can use PVC pipes to make hoops and attach your nettings to it, cheap enough. I actually find it to be much more durable than the junk hoops they sell on Amazon.

Every gardening and farming supply are very expensive now, so I agree it's important to be frugal. But 53 post-inflation dollars for a 6x3' metal bed that lasts more than 10 years, I think it's a good investment.

I do agree that some big youtubers do shill very overpriced products. The youtuber you mentioned sells a small bag of fertilizer for $64, this is rip off on a level that even I would be ashamed of.

[paulandbarbie]

We're in Northwest Florida zone 9a. We used wood for years but had to replace too many times and lumber is getting very expensive. Switched to metal raised beds over the past few years and love them. We do not have heat issues with soil like you mentioned having, curious if your problem was because of the type of bed in your video? Appears to be galvanized without any type of powder coating. We decided to purchase Birdies beds and so far after 3 seasons they're showing no wear & tear. Yes, I agree with you as far the cost, but I'm 54 and convinced I most likely will not have to replace in my lifetime. Where are you located, and what type of wood is available in your area? Good luck with your garden and have a blessed day!

[alexleanh]

I'm a super cheapo guy... so... three, four hundred dollars are big bucks to me! Nope, never going to spend that kind of money on a raised bed... even without the problems you have presented. I make my own raised beds for free... with untreated woods from pallets, or even from scrapped woods laying around the house (or friends' and neighbors').

[leighb.]

Thanks SO MUCH! I am the most frugal person I know and I have been plagued by the metal raised beds. I couldn't get a $459 one off my mind, and it wasn't even large enough for my needs! I didn't want to want it, but I couldn't stop wanting it! I wanted it SO BAD! The color was so .... aesthetically pleasing and all the pieces ... I could shape in so many ways ... AGGHHHH! -- Then I've had the 2 x 6's and some corner brackets in my on-line home depot cart for 4 months that would cost me all of $20 to make a perfect-sized bed for my needs. FINALLY I can buy the stuff from home depot and get my summer stuff down. Thanks SO MUCH, Truth Lady!

[bettypearson]

I got sucked into buying them when they were cheaper and on sale. I am very cheap. The biggest ones i got were under $50 and a few smaller ones at $20.

A couple remedies is i am only using them in my perennial food forest which means they do warm up sooner in the spring before the leaves start diminishing the light and in the dead of summer they have partial shade so they don't get as hot and dont require as much water.

To counter the sharp edges, i get pool noodles at walmart, cut half lengthwise and cover that edge.

I would never buy them for my regular garden for a few reasons. If i were to do raised beds i would need to get the ones 36+" tall because i am aging and as such would need to build my garden up to be able to continue with potential mobility issues and that cost is even more exhorbitantly high and of course the heat that would be generated.

I do appreciate your honesty about them as everyone else is just jumping on the bandwagon.

[GreenVines]

I have purchased 10 metal raised beds and in the last 3 years. 3 have rusted, 1 has severe rust and will not last through the year. I had wood beds in the past but they showed signs of termite damage. I think I will move more towards how I started, direct sowing in the ground 😂 FYI-I live in zone 9.

[aUNVACCINATED]

Buy 2 2x12 pieces of lumber, cut 2 ft off both pieces and you have a 2x10 raised bed for about $13. Or you can buy 2 2x12 and 1 2x8, cut that in half and you have 4x12 for about $20

[kb]

Love my raised metal bed! Mine was $60 from Amazon, 6'x3'x12", painted light green and has a top rubber like edge. I am in GA and do not find heat a problem. Wood beds filled the same way would need to be topped off after time as well, or more likely just need replaced due to rot.

[ritad.franklin]

SOME OF THE METAL BEDS DO HAVE A RUBBER PIECE THAT THEY PUT OVER THE SHARP EDGES OF THE BEDS. THIS WOULD DEFINATELY HELP. HOWEVER, IT WOULDN'T HELP WITHT THE TEMPATURE OF THE SOIL IN THE METAL BEDS. SO THANK YOU FOR THE GOOD PERSPECTIVE. TO PREVENT THE WOOD FROM ROTTING ON A WOODEN BED, A PERSON COULD PUT NEATS FOOT OIL ON THE WOOD, JUST BRUSH IT ON. WAIT TWO OR THREE DAYS, THEN SHELACK THE BEDS TO PREVENT ROT FROM THE RAIN WATER.

[charleneriggs]

My vegega beds don’t get hot and they last 20+ years. My gardens grow wonderfully. I even added drip tape irrigation with an automatic timer. You can by hoope made for the beds and also trellises.

[littletechgirl]

None of this is my experience. I have a variety of metal beds from Vego Garden, Subpod, Vegega, Amazon, and more. I love them all. The heat is not an issue. Most of them do not get hot at all. And the soil does not get too hot to grow things. That is a myth. I grow tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, squash, and more in them without a problem. I have been using them for 4+ years now and I get a huge harvest every year. Mine are all 17" or higher, so no stooping. And yes, the wood will break down and need to be replaced. The metal will outlive me, so actually that is a benefit, not a bad thing.

Need to sit? I have a little garden stool that I lug around. And you can still use trellises and covers. I'm about to build a PVC one for one of my beds.

I think if you made some adjustments they would work just fine for you. If things do not seem to be growing well it could be the soil. 🤷