How To Create Flower Beds With Landscaping Sleepers

Whether you're growing soft fruits, vegetables, small trees, shrubs or any perennials; a raised flower bed offers a wide range of benefits for assiduous gardeners. Improved drainage, great access, an increased soil temperature and the ability to grow in different soil types, are all major attractions.

As a provider of landscape sleepers in Surrey here at Pennyhill Timber, we are well-aware of the need for the materials to be high in quality – not only do they help to make great-looking beds that add to the picturesque merits of your garden, they should also be able to facilitate thriving plants too. This is why it's important to be able to know how to create your ideal sleeper beds – and why we've put together dome tips on doing so!

Landscape Sleepers In Surrey: Tips on Creating Your Landscape Sleeper Beds

Regardless of your gardening expertise, constructing a robust landscaping sleeper bed is relatively straightforward – here are our tips:

• Where do you want to put the raised bed? Before you think about purchasing any landscape sleepers in Surrey, you should always envisage where you want your beds to be. It may sound an obvious point to make, but it's common for people to not consider the positioning of their beds, with both sides being accessible.

• Position the sleepers on the ground. Place your sleepers on the ground in either a square or a rectangular shape, with the sleepers touching at the 90 degree corners (think 'picture frame'). The sleepers should ideally be laid on a surface that is both level and firm – many people normally lay them directly on grass, earth, decking or concrete. Remember about the draining aspect of the bed – where will the water go? It draining directly into grass and earth is the easiest option.
  

• Fasten the sleepers together. Use specialist screws to fasten your sleepers together on their 90 degree corners, allowing for at least 50mm/2 inches of each screw to go into the adjoining sleeper. Using two screws for every corner offers a secure solution.
  

• Adding additional layers. Adding additional layers will raise the bed higher, offering a deeper growth area for plants that may require it. Simply create the layers separately (using the instructions outlined above), stacking them upon each other when finished. You can then either fasten them together with a batten or metal strip, or use a large screw that goes from the top level to the one(s) below.
  

• Placing a barrier between soil and sleeper. In order to attain a long-lasting bed, there is more that needs to be done than constructing one from high-quality landscape sleepers from Surrey. To provide added protection to the wood, many gardeners choose to fix a plastic sheet on the inside of the raised bed in order to create a barrier between the wet soil and the sleeper. The wetness of the soil is always liable to create damp conditions that will cause rot to a wooden bed; using a thick, heavy-duty plastic (which also won't degrade in the soil) – such a damp proof membrane – will be ideal.
  

• Filling up with soil. Before you go ahead and place in all you bags of compost, top soil or manure, it may be worth also placing in some stones or bricks at the bottom of the bed to encourage drainage. An excess of moisture within the soil will often create conditions that allow for rot to thrive, damaging growing plants (as well as the bed itself). As the soil will 'bed in' over time, it will become compacted – a layer of rocks at the bottom will give the moisture somewhere to go, so that it drains away from the soil, instead of staying put. Unlike the soil, rock will not degrade or become compact over time.

You should now have the ideal bed in which to fill it with your plants. All that's left now is for you to constantly nurture and watch your creations spring to life – the joys of gardening.

High-Quality Landscaping Materials From Pennyhill Timber

If you're searching for landscape sleepers in Surrey to create your ideal flower beds, please feel free to browse our wide range. Our selection has been created from the finest materials around, balancing the fine line between great quality and great value. Whether you're looking for oak sleepers, that offer a strong, long-lasting bed, incised sleepers that make for easier treatment – or even stock green, eco-friendly landscaping sleepers, we have everything you need to create great-looking, highly-functional plant beds.

To learn more about our services and products, please feel free to get in touch with a member of our friendly customer support team today. You can call 01483 486 739 or you can e-mail info@pennyhilltimber.co.uk