My Raised Beds for a Garden-to-be

                     

Last spring, when I told my son, Tony, that I would really like to have a small raised bed to grow a few vegetables without bending over, he put his creative mind to work.  We were having a fence put around our back yard, and he took down the basketball hoop that had been here since we moved to Preston.  We were left with a large concrete pad, and in trying to figure out what to do with it, this became the foundation for these raised beds.  Like all projects of size, this seemed easy to Tony at first, but his original assessment that that the project would be finished in a few weeks, proved to be too optimistic - in all, and between other things, it took about two months to complete. Some input from a visiting brother-in-law showed that Tony was on the right track, and he really worked hard on this project.  I planted the 8 tomato plants that I had optimistically purchased the last of May, and they are thriving - will just have to cover them this fall so that we can enjoy the late crop.  The gardens are waist-high, and there is room for a large garden next spring.  Tony placed a bench at the back, and put a rug in the center - for comfort and looks, too.  Next spring, the drip system will go into the beds, and seeds and plants should make it look good.