As more and more people are confronted with the health risks of processed foods and the energy drain of trucking foods into our areas, they are turning to gardening and growing their own food. Others are content to eat as much local food as they can find and just fill in the gaps with shipped in foods.

If you have a lot of land to put in a garden or a greenhouse, you know that growing your own food is possible. On the other hand, if you are limited on space or live in the inner city, you have to come up with a solution to the space problem before ever thinking about growing your own. One of those solutions is the used of a raised bed.

It’s interesting to watch how the younger generation is acting today much like the older generation that went through the depression. Both seem to be much more aware and willing to change to do their part and change the world.

People have been growing their own food for generations so little is really that new though the technology and tools make it easier. Integrating cedar raised beds into an organic growing plan is great but it will never replace the gardener. It needs you to succeed.

If you decide to use a raised bed on a balcony, deck or suspended patio you will need to be aware of the weight restrictions before you decide on the size of bed you would like to use. Though you can plant more with a tiered bed it will weigh considerably more since all the dirt is amassed in a small space. You can also use “light” soil that can be purchased at your local plant nursery.

Use common sense when placing your bed for the fall through winter months as the sun does change position and the plants will need as much sun as they can get during this time. This will also help you with heat as well. Depending on where you live, you will need to invest in a covering of some sort. A good milled plastic will work to block out the wind and you may need to add a heater for the evenings that are below 45 degrees mark.

Another consideration during the colder months will be heat. Your plants will need to be kept above that 40 degree mark if at all possible. You can accomplish this with a number of methods but the easiest is to use a small electric heater. Just be safe and make sure it is free and has a lot of room around it. You can also heat up and pot of water and simply place it within the enclosure as the heat will radiate all night long.

Though you may think this is way harder than you want to tackle, the fact is, it takes real effort to grow your own food on a year round basis and not everyone will succeed. However, when you serve a meal fresh from your deck garden you will feel fantastic and know you grew it and it is healthy. So have fun and experiment to find the best way to year round garden for you.

There are some great raised bed boxes on the market today. You can also use a cedar raised bed kits for organically grown vegetables and herbs.