Oops! I need to revise the cost of the cinder block bed. I also forgot to mention that it took 26 cinder blocks AND tops. The tops added to the price by more than double. Probably added another $40. So the real cost of the cinder block bed was was likely around $90 - $100 because I also used the construction adhesive to glue the blocks and tops all together. Then add to that the cost of the other 2 tiered beds, it cost me about $200 not including the soil that had to be added to such a large garden bed area. You could make a smaller 3-tiered bed for much cheaper if you didn't use the plastic wood. You can make it as cheap or expensive as you wanted. My attitude was I wanted something that would last a long time and not require a lot of maintenance. I think I have finally found the answer using cinder blocks and concrete.
I originally had all wooden framed beds and they all rotted here in damp Florida after about 3 years. I also had an issue with carpenter ants and termites after the second year. This was treated wood, too! Grrrr ... I hated having to keep replacing the wooden frames. I am not getting any younger. Trying to build a bed around an existing one with dirt already in it is a real pain! This new cinder block bed won't require replacing every few years. It will probably last longer than me! I love it! That bed is what convinced me to do ALL my beds in concrete. Not all my beds are cinder blocks either.
I learned another neat trick using concrete. I'll have to take a photo of a project I've started. It's not finished yet. I have a large wood framed bed around an Oak tree. The wood has been rotting. So I've been laying down 60 lb. concrete bags around the outside of the wooden frame. I wet down the bags with a water hose and covered all the damp bags with plastic and let it harden. I continue to wet them down every day for about 3 days. They set up nice and hard by then. I peel the paper bag off each one and I now have what looks like medium stones framing out this garden bed. And because that area slopes pretty bad. I plan to add a second row from the lowest point to half way up the slope to make it look level. And the bags before the concrete hardens conform very nicely to the ground underneath each bag, so I don't have to mess with trying to make sure the ground is level or perfect. It looks like a short stone wall. No rocks for cheap or free in Florida, so I am making my own medium stones from bags of concrete! Also relatively cheap. I think the last bag of concrete I bought was less than $3. The bags are a decent size but heavy. Using them will definitely help stop the erosion in my yard! And should last nearly forever! And after they weather, they really look like stones and not concrete! Concrete really works well here in Florida! The only thing is you don't want to stack them too high because that could be dangerous if they should fall over. No more than 3 bags high. I doubt I will use more than 2 bags high. I might also try standing the bags on their sides instead of laying them flat on the ground. That could make a nice border or bed frame too. The one bad thing about these bags is the weight. I usually pick up a few bags every so often and add to my garden bed. Not worth hurting my back over. So I just add a few at a time until each bed is done. And since I am putting them around the outside of the existing garden bed, I don't have to do anything else once each bed is done. The wood frame on the inside will eventually completely rot and then the bed will expand out slightly to the concrete stones!
