A raised garden bed, set up in an afternoon.

The short answerTo build a raised garden bed, choose a level spot with 6–8 hours of sun near a hose. Keep the bed no wider than 4 feet so you can reach the middle, and use rot-resistant cedar or a raised-bed kit. Assemble the frame, level it, lay cardboard to smother grass, then fill with raised-bed or garden soil mixed with compost. Volume in cubic feet is length × width × depth in feet. Fall is a great time to build and fill so the soil settles before spring.