Make New Raised Beds, But Keep the Old.

Over the years, we’ve found that organic gardens in Charlotte have a way of growing.

And we’re not talking about copious harvests of show-stopper tomatoes, or fine-textured, blue-ribbon-winning winter squash, either. 

That’s a foregone conclusion, here at Microfarm.

We’re talking about scaling up the organic garden in size, to increase production.

A bigger area dedicated to growing edible varieties organically.

More cedar garden beds to satiate that love of organic gardening.

In fact, we’ve found it so likely that an organic garden design with one raised garden bed will eventually have two or three cedar garden beds, that we plan for this eventuality during the initial site visit to scout out an organic garden site.

Might as well know how much space is available for future growth, right?

And such was the case with Charlotte’s Turner family.

Like many Charlotte families, they began their organic garden with one of our 4’x8’ Kitchen Garden raised beds, which we placed in a sunny nook in the backyard.

You can grow a lot of organic produce in our 4’x8’ Kitchen Garden raised bed. And many growers find it an attractive raised bed design, too.

The Turners liked the look of this 19”-tall cedar garden bed design so much, that it found a home in a prominent area in the backyard, just outside the kitchen window.  

We installed 1/2” diameter drip irrigation in the garden bed, filled the cedar planter with a premium organic soil blend, and even planted the family’s selection of seedlings when we wrapped up the installation that day.

Then the years rolled by.

Six years, to be exact.

When we returned to revisit the property in 2026, things had moved around a little since April of 2020.

That trampoline that was in the backyard wasn’t there anymore.

Two new cars - both with teenage drivers - were now parked out in the driveway.

And an area at a corner of the family’s backyard that was overgrown in 2020, had recently been cleared when the power company installed new utility poles and power lines.

With branches from the nearby trees pruned way, way back, and the newly-cleared area bathed in sunlight, this previously unsuitable area now had everything we look for in an organic garden site: 

6+ hours of sunlight.

Close to the kitchen.

A water supply nearby.

And best of all, this site had much more space than the previous garden site - enough room to add two new 4’x8’ Kitchen Garden raised beds to the existing one, which we would move back to the new garden site. 

After we moved and reinstalled the existing raised bed ( which was still in remarkably excellent condition, by the way) back to the new garden site, we’d then install the two new 4’x8’ cedar garden beds right beside it. We’d install drip irrigation grids in all three 4’x8’ raised garden beds, and connect them underground so that they could be tied into the property’s existing irrigation system, and watered simultaneously on a dedicated zone at the main irrigation control panel.

Then we’d fill all three cedar garden beds with a premium organic soil blend -  just like we always do.

There was just one small problem. More of an aesthetic preference than a problem, really, but still something that we had to address.

You see, with exposure to sunlight, red cedar will weather to silver grey - sometimes in just  a matter of weeks. Most people seem to prefer this weathered look, and red cedar still retains its famous outdoor durability long, long after the red color has faded to silver.

And even though the Turner family’s six-year-old cedar garden bed seemed to have years of useful life left, it’s sun-faded silver color wouldn’t match the pinkish red color of the two brand new 4’x8’ Kitchen Garden raised garden beds.

Sure, the two new cedar garden beds would eventually fade to silver, just like the existing one. But the Turner family liked the idea of creating a more uniform appearance for all three raised beds -  perhaps even a way to extend the life of the cedar and give all three planters a more ‘polished’ appearance that would be easier to maintain over time. 

Staining all three 4’x8’ raised beds with a semi-transparent, pigmented exterior wood stain was the answer, and applying a heavy coat of stain to the exterior of the two brand new cedar garden beds was easy enough.

But, a semitransparent, exterior wood stain wouldn’t have quite enough pigment to conceal the silver color of the six-year-old raised bed ; it would ‘show through’ the stain, and, thus, not achieve the desired uniform appearance for all three cedar raised beds. 

But this was resolved by simply planing and then sanding the exterior surfaces of the family’s existing planter before applying the stain. In fact, once we completed this step, the original pink/red color of the six-year-old cedar garden bed was essentially fully restored. 

 

And the end result, when all three raised garden beds had been stained with the same semitransparent stain, installed, fitted with drip irrigation and filled with organic soil?

Not bad at all. 

In fact, the three cedar garden beds had a surprisingly uniform appearance.

To us, anyway

Now, can you tell which of the three raised beds is six years old, and which two are brand new?

Take all the time you need.

Have fun with it. 

Study all three raised garden beds closely. 

Zoom in on the photos, but only if you must.

Pick the winner, if you can.

Think of it like a game of three-card-monte on the sidewalk of a big city.

But way less sketchy, and just for fun.