How to Design and Plant a Garden Bed from Scratch

Designing and planting a garden bed from scratch is a straightforward and worthwhile process that’s easier than you might think. The key is to start with a goal, develop a plan and then follow it step by step. We’ll walk you through everything you need to know before you begin.

When you look at a mature garden, it’s easy to forget that it once started as bare ground. Designing and planting a garden bed from scratch provides the opportunity to shape the space exactly the way you want, from how the bed lines flow to the plants that will provide interest all year long.

The key is to start with a goal, develop a plan and then follow it step by step. We’ll walk you through everything you need to know before you begin.

Define Your Goal

The first step in designing a new garden bed is to decide on your goal for the space. Perhaps you’d like to enhance an underutilized part of your yard, are looking to screen a view, or want to add interest by creating a focal point. Achieving a garden goal starts by defining it.

For our new garden bed project, we decided to establish a new garden for plants with native roots that looked like a natural extension of the surrounding woods in this underutilized space.

Pick a Place

Consider your garden goal when picking a place to construct your new garden bed. Precision is needed in this step, especially if you are looking to screen a view or establish a focal point. Stand back and look at the space from many different angles to make sure the bed will be established exactly where it can fulfill its purpose. If your garden goal is to grow sun-loving plants, make sure you pick a place that isn’t too shady.

A few other details to keep in mind when choosing a place for your new garden bed include its proximity to irrigation, sun and wind patterns, the space needed to grow the plants you want and location of lot lines.

Using inverted marking paint, we marked out the bed line for our new garden.

Mark the Bed Lines

Once you have picked the spot for your new garden bed, it’s time to mark the bed lines. One easy way to define a curved bed line is by laying out a garden hose and tweaking its placement until you have the flow of the bed just right. To draw straight lines, you could snap a chalk line or use a piece of dimensional lumber such as a 2x4.

Next, use stakes, flags or inverted marking paint to mark the bed lines. If you don’t plan to start right away, stakes or flags are a better option. If you plan to dig the bed line in the next week or two, inverted marking paint which is temporary works well.

Record the Bed Dimensions

Stand back and look at the lines you drew in step 3 and ask yourself if you can achieve your garden goal with such a bed. Is it large enough to fit the types of plants you want to grow? A common mistake when constructing a new garden bed is to make it too small.

Consider that an average mid-sized shrub grows about four feet wide. If you plan to install more than a single line of such plants, your new garden bed will need to be deeper than four feet. Also plan to leave some room in front of your plants for mulch between them and the bordering grass or pavement.

Once you have settled on your new garden bed’s size and shape, record its measurements to use in the next step.

Garden designs can be as complex as you’d like them to be. Drawing yours to scale and using color can ultimately lead to a more satisfying result in the end.

Sketch a Design

Designs for new garden beds can range from a simple sketch on scrap paper to a detailed plan drawn to scale on graph paper. Having a drawing that is to scale will help you purchase the right number of plants for your space.

If you plan to fill your new garden bed over time, it’s important to start with a master plan that marks the spots for larger, harder to transplant items like trees and large shrubs. Most perennials are fairly easy to move around if needed, but woody plants are more permanent and tend to suffer more from transplanting. Knowing what you will plant where from the beginning makes it easier to put the pieces of the puzzle together as time and budget allows.

When sketching the design for your new garden bed, use the measurements on the online plant records or plant tags which describe the expected mature size of the plants.

If you don’t feel ready to design your own garden bed, or if you’re looking for design inspiration, try our EZ Scapes^™ landscape designs. These free garden recipes combine three to five complementary varieties of perennials and shrubs together, centered around themes like deer resistance and shade tolerance. Download the accurately scaled designs and bring them to your local garden center to purchase the plants.

It’s time to shop! Collect the plants you’ll be installing in your new garden bed. If you’ll be planting in stages throughout the year, start with the largest plants first if you can.

Collect the Plants

Many people make the mistake of starting the process of creating a new garden bed by buying plants. It’s wiser, however, to complete the first five steps described above so when the time comes, you’ll make smarter investments in the new plants from the start.

If you will be installing the plants in your new garden bed over time, start with the largest plants first, such as the trees and large shrubs, if possible. They will establish what’s known as the “bones” of the bed and give it the structure around which everything else will be centered. Spring and fall are ideal times to plant trees and shrubs. If your budget doesn’t allow for purchasing the largest items first, be sure to leave plenty of room to get equipment in to plant them later.

Next, collect the perennials you will be including in your new garden bed. Now is the time to purchase the new potted perennials you’ll need. If you will be transplanting perennials from elsewhere in your yard, hold off on digging them up until you’ve completed step 8.

If you will be including annuals in your new garden bed, it may be a little more difficult to keep them watered well until planting time if they are in small nursery pots. If it will be a couple of weeks before you are ready to plant them, consider purchasing larger plants or pot smaller ones up temporarily into slightly larger nursery containers to make it easier to keep them moist in the interim.

Next, we used a sod cutter to quickly cut and remove the bulk of the turf grass in this space.

Remove the Existing Vegetation

Unless your home is brand new construction, you’ll likely need to remove the existing vegetation in the spot you chose for your new garden bed. Before digging in a new area, it is always advisable to call your utility notification center and have them come out to mark underground lines before excavation begins.

We used a shovel to remove the sod in this tighter spot so we didn’t damage the evergreen in the bed.

There are several ways to remove existing vegetation, and it is up to you which you choose. You could:

Dig it out – This is perhaps the most common and fastest way of getting rid of what’s in the way. If the existing vegetation is turf grass, renting a sod cutter for a day is a very quick way to do it. If you need to be careful digging around irrigation and utility lines, using a shovel may be safer.
Cover it up – If time allows, an excellent way to kill off existing vegetation is by covering it securely with a tarp pinned down into place and leaving it for a few weeks before moving to step 8. This can also be done on bare ground to solarize the soil and kill off weed seeds in the soil.

Another popular method of creating a new garden bed is to cover up the existing vegetation with cardboard. However, using cardboard is not a scientifically sound method and can actually do more harm than good. Be sure to read up on the subject, using a credible source like a University Extension Office or The Garden Professors^™, if you are thinking of doing so.
Kill it off – If you are not opposed to using chemicals in your garden, they can eliminate existing vegetation. Non-selective herbicides will kill anything they come in contact with. Horticultural grade vinegar is also a chemical that will kill vegetation but may require several applications. Protective gear should be used anytime you use chemicals in your garden.

If you choose not to remove existing vegetation and prefer instead to build your new garden bed on top of it, the lasagna and no-till methods have proven to be effective for building raised garden beds.

Test and Amend the Soil, if Needed

The native soil in this bed was extremely sandy and dry. To improve its water retention capacity and build up nutrients, a blend of compost and topsoil was spread across the bed and then tilled in.

If you’ve never tested your soil or it’s been a long time since you've done so, consider sending in a sample of the soil from your new garden bed to your local University Extension Office for a soil test. For a small fee, they will analyze the makeup and chemistry of your soil and provide recommendations on how it could be amended to achieve optimal growth.

Your soil test will also provide you with a record of your soil’s pH, which is a measure of its alkalinity or acidity. Alternatively, use a pH meter (available at most garden centers and hardware stores) to determine your soil’s pH. If it is too alkaline to grow your desired plants, the soil can be amended with aluminum sulfate or garden sulfur to lower the pH. If the soil is too acidic, it can be amended with garden lime, wood ash or bone meal.

Learn more about garden soil and how to amend it:

Stage the Plants

Gather together the plants you’ll be installing in your new garden bed, including any you have dug up for transplanting. Then, using the design you sketched in step 5 or the EZ Scapes landscape design you’ve selected, set all the plants out in their allotted places. Use a tape measure to get the spacing just right, keeping in mind there may be gaps between plants for now to allow them room to grow.

Stand back and assess how the plants look together in the arrangement you planned. Is there a pleasing mix of colors, textures and shapes? Check to see if there will be something of interest in the bed in each season (Find tips for that here.) Making changes during the staging process is far easier than doing so after everything is planted. Tweak the placement until it’s just right – then you are finally ready for Step 10: planting.

We installed the plants in our new garden bed over a single season beginning in spring with the trees across the back of the bed.

Install the Plants

Now, it’s time for the step you’ve probably been imagining from the very start of your project – planting! This step will go faster and be easier if you have the right tools on hand. We highly recommend using our jumbo-sized Twist ‘n Plant^® garden auger for planting potted perennials, shrubs and trees. If using a pointed shovel, sharpen it before you begin installing plants to make digging through tough soil and roots easier.

A few other tools you might have on hand when installing plants include hand pruners, loppers (for snipping larger roots), a hori hori knife for loosening up rootbound plants, knee pads or a kneeling pad, and a wheelbarrow for empty pots.

We took advantage of mild late spring weather to install the remainder of the woody plants in our design, leaving room for the many perennials that would be installed later in the season.

Some people choose to plant new garden beds in order from the largest items like trees to the smallest ones like perennials and annuals. Other people choose to plant garden beds from left to right or back to front. Since you’ve staged all of your plants in step 9, there’s no right or wrong way to go about the task as long as you have enough room to maneuver in the bed.

Here’s a refresher on the proper way to plant a shrub.

Water Your Plants

After you’ve installed the plants in your new garden bed, settle them in by watering them thoroughly. Doing so will help to eliminate large air pockets around the roots and alleviate some transplanting stress on the plants.

This first watering is best done by hand with a hose or watering can so you can pay close attention to each plant and make sure it is watered well. Subsequent waterings can be done by automatic irrigation, but the first time you run the system, make sure each plant is within range of a sprinkler head. If there are a few plants that aren’t receiving enough water, you’ll need to supplement by hand until they get established.

Once you’ve installed your plants, mulch the bed. If you will be planting in stages throughout the year, you may want to mulch the bed between plantings to prevent weeds from taking hold in bare soil.

Mulch the Bed

Mulching your new garden bed is recommended after watering your plants thoroughly the first time. Why after? Mulch can absorb a surprising amount of water, leaving the soil fairly dry underneath. You want to be sure your newly installed plants are watered in thoroughly, especially right after planting.

Mulching with an organic mulch like shredded wood or bark or pine straw rather than stone has numerous benefits when establishing plants in a new garden bed. They keep the soil moist and moderate the soil temperature, preventing the ground from heating up too much around the root zone just as tender new roots are starting to grow. Organic mulch breaks down over time, providing nutrients to the plants as they are becoming established. It also helps to prevent mold spores in the soil from splashing up onto the foliage and causing foliar diseases.

That’s it! You’ve done it! You started with a goal, developed a plan, prepared the site and settled your new plants well into their new home. Your new garden bed is sure to bring you years of enjoyment and though you may tweak it as the plants mature, you can take great pride in your accomplishment.