MUST KNOW TIPS before Buying a Raised Metal Garden Bed

Looking to get a raised metal garden bed, but confused on which brand to buy. If you are figuring out if you should go with a corrugated metal raised garden bed, and considering brands like Birdies, Vego, VegeGa, Savana, and Best Choice Products... you need to watch this first! These are the tips you should know BEFORE you buy a raised metal garden bed.
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[@WildFloridian]

Looking to get a raised metal garden bed, but confused on which brand to buy... check out the brand I use in my garden. www.wildfloridian.net/gardenbed 10% COUPON CODE WILDFLORIDIAN

[@Flowers4Bees.Veggies4Me]

Great video. I love my Vegegas. I bought them after watching your review. I’ve also added 50+ native plants plus 4 native trees. I made a list of all the native plants and visited the native nurseries you suggested. I also want to add Bee Happy Native Nursery in Zephyrhills. They are a new nursery and only open on Fridays and Saturdays. Thanks for all your information and guidance. ❤💚

[@WildFloridian]

Wowowowowow! So many native plants!!!! I'm so excited for you and your garden transformation!

[@KittieriRavynVlogs]

Fellow Floridian here! I was wanting some metal beds to trellis across in my front yard. Make it look kinda romantic ya know? Maybe put a bench in the middle. Thanks for all the info! I am trying to turn my trashed backyard into a food forest if you want to check it out. ❤❤

[@WildFloridian]

Howdy neighbor! I hope this helps you when you are ready to pick beds. It sounds like you have a lovely vision for your garden.

[@fishrrelaxing9361]

You don’t want zinc coated.. that is a very cheap coating.. you want galvanized.. still a zinc coating but a g rated galvanizing is embeded into the metal itself.. If it just says zinc coating then it’s basically just a thin paint.. it’s not really a weatherproofing coating at all.. think of it like a cheap fake chrome finish on something that chips and peaks off.. any scratch or anything will rust immediately as if it was untreated.. Essentially the same as shed and roofing metal is what you want all of which is galvanized not zinc coated which is why it can last 30-50 years Cheap advice especially Floridians.. no mater the type I recommend repainting it yearly or buy early .. paint is your first layer of protection against the weather.. and this applies to your home as well.. I see so many not getting homes repainted often enough and what you don’t see is your house as a result is rotting inside out.. then you paint it cause it looks bad and all your doing is lipstick to the pig.. repaint things regularly..

[@mistycarter9809]

Wow! What a great transformation!! Love how you 2 figured out how to do that without removing everything first.

[@WildFloridian]

Yes! That would have been insane if we had to remove everything. Thank you!

[@paigecarbon3473]

What do you use for shade or keeping the garden beds cool in the hot summer. I live in Tampa, very hot here obviously.

[@sammievans4973]

thank you! almost perfect timing, i ordered my first set of metal garden beds yesterday!

[@WildFloridian]

Yay! 😁

[@justinritter7925]

Galvanized steel is a good option as well.

[@ptien]

Does the code still valid? I just tried and it didn’t work

[@mwnemo]

I went with concrete block beds. Bad luck with metal being so close to the ocean. Home Depot did have them for a good price at $1.57 a block. Just jumped up 60 cents. Hopefully they come down during different season.

[@WildFloridian]

Love that idea! Hurricane grade garden beds!

[@TheIslandBathProducts]

This is my second season with similar, cheap amazon beds. I'm not looking forward to having to replace them down the road. I wish I knew they rust so badly before I installed 34 of them! OMG

[@WildFloridian]

OH NO! That's awful. I hope you can salvage them.

[@monica.bfloridarealtor]

I bought five of these beds after seeing your original video. Loving them so far. Thanks for the videos!

[@WildFloridian]

Glad you like them!

[@sarahbhutta251]

The beds look great! I’ve been comparing beds but am holding off till I know I can grow ANYTHING! Veggie and flower seeds still stunted.

[@WildFloridian]

Thank you! Your process is very wise!

[@caspiana3623]

You could have just put 4x4s in the corners and screw the wall of the old beds to them. There was enough life left in them...

[@allieandrews1179]

Hi! In case you were wondering: you're awesome! Thank you for sharing so much great local information. :D I'm completely new to this whole gardening in Florida experience, but I'm 100% here for it! (and low cost / free hacks) Keep up the good work. You're a stellar human being from what I can tell. Cheers!

[@WildFloridian]

Thank you Allie 🥰 I really appreciate this.

[@sarahbhutta251]

You look like a kid sitting in your driveway building the bed. 😊

[@SunshineGarden-9B]

Great information! I might need to buy raised garden beds soon and this is very helpful. My husband and I are moving and I am looking at different options for new garden 😀

[@WildFloridian]

Glad it was helpful! Best wishes on your move!

[@timmcquerry6068]

I could certainly be wrong, but the rounded ends ( stock tank look )ones are structurally superior to the ones with 90 degree corners.

[@WildFloridian]

Yes! Curves are structurally better for two reasons. The 90 deg bend creates more of a stress point in the metal and can allow for faster degradation. From holding of materials curves are superior to sharp angles, but since it is such a small amount of force from the soil because these are only 17" high... it shouldn't have a significant impact. Thank you for allowing me to use my Mechanical Engineering degree. LOL!

[@FreddKing-nd8fz]

Good morning Ben and Jacqueline. Good to see you today. The dimensions of the new beds were pretty close to old ones. Nice job. Could have been much harder. Have a great day and weekend.

[@WildFloridian]

Thank you Fredd! Cheers and Happy Tuesday!

[@NicoleLevit_]

I'm so glad I came across your video! I was going to buy the ones that rotted... And I live in the UK so lots of rain would make it go like this even faster... Thank you for saving me the hassle :)

[@WildFloridian]

Yay!!!! I'm so happy! Best wishes from Florida

[@tiffanydetzel9125]

Hi 👋 I'm leaving my comment on this video just because it's your newest and I wasn't sure if you check old videos for comments... I'm really hoping you can help me... I know you know a lot about Firebush... I just went out to my greenhouse where I have been keeping several of my potted plants that I purchased about a month ago, planning to plant them as soon as the super cold weather is over... I had bought 2 firebush, and 1 Calusa Firebush. All have been Looking super healthy from the time I bought them And doing great. But all of a sudden, ALL 3 of them have dropped TONS of leaves!! Each one is surrounded by leaves on the ground everywhere😫 I just about fell over! They were perfect yesterday with no leaves on the ground. What happened!??? I inspected the leaves and they all look healthy from what I can see. I have several other different types of plants in there and it's only the three firebush that this has happened to. Right now it is dark and raining so I will take a closer look tomorrow, but do you have any idea what this could be? I am in Northwest Bradenton Florida and we have had pretty chilly nights here lately and the past two days a lot of rain. They are in the part of my Greenhouse that has a screen over top so they still do get the rain. The temperature has been in the low 50s but I figured that should be fine and even if weather had something to do with it I would think that the leaves would show some signs of some kind? They aren't yellowed or any spots or anything. They just all look like super healthy leaves that have just fallen off. They do get plenty of Sun in there and I have been tending to them every day. I'm so confused and sad😔 they were so beautiful.

[@WildFloridian]

Howdy Tiffany! You are correct. I rarely catch comments from old videos. A couple of questions... were the leaves red before they dropped or were they green? Usually as firebush hit cold weather the leaves turn red or rusty first. How was the soil in the containers? Firebush can go dormant and die back to the ground. Its possible these are going dormant. Scratch the branches to see if the wood is dead or if there is green underneath. If it is green underneath, I would monitor. Did they get dried out? They will drop their leaves if they lack water. They will also drop leaves if the roots have been disturbed. Any sign something dug into the pots (bottom up). Just throwing out different things to check. If you are planning to put them in the ground, I would wait until mid/late February in Bradenton. They are very resilient plants. Fingers crossed they are ok.

[@tiffanydetzel9125]

@@WildFloridian thank you so much for your quick reply. Upon inspection of the leaves, some of them do look like they were starting to look a little bit reddish-spotted in some places. I scratched the wood and it's definitely a healthy bright green underneath. As far as the soil goes, it looks pretty good to me. And I don't see any signs of something that had gotten into the pot or anything. They didn't dry out all the way but I was trying to be very careful to not overwater them, as that has been my tendency. Then they got overloaded with rain for 2 days in a row. I do have two fire bush that are in the ground already that I planted several months ago in late summer. Both of them are looking pretty shabby with reddish spots on the leaves as well as several of the Leaf tips looking like they're drying and curling up. However, neither of those plants are losing leaves. I was actually just about to prune them within the next week once it warms up a bit. I do see lots of New Growth that has started on the branches. I'm a little nervous to prune because I'm kind of new at the whole gardening thing And don't want to do it wrong. But they are definitely looking like they are needing something! As for the potted plants though, They were looking so healthy🫤 I guess it could be just the cold weather?? And maybe all of a sudden getting so much rain?

[@pattybips5519]

I bought one before watching this. Says it's galvanized..we'll see

[@2021-j2d]

I bought 5 of the BCP beds on Amazon that you recommended previously and they are not even a year old and are rusting at the seams and around the screws. Looking for ways to support them before they crumble. Suggestions welcomed.

[@WildFloridian]

Oh no 😬 I’m so sorry you got them too. My best choice product video has suggestions from our WF community. Everything from just strapping them with cable to use cement blocks to prop them up. I like the idea of taking some 2x4 and screwing the long panels to them.

[@2021-j2d]

@@WildFloridian yes, we’ve talked about framing them with wood to make them look like they are intentionally wooden beds although the cost on top of what we’ve already spent on the BCP beds is getting exorbitant. Gotta do something sooner rather than later before they actually fall apart. I will say that the oval shaped beds seem to be in better shape than the rectangular ones with the bad corners that don’t last but all are very rusted at seams & screws. Live & learn. Education ain’t cheap, right?

[@DrivingFree]

So glad I saw this video. My wooden 4x4 and 4x8 beds are rotten. Looked at Vegega but they didn’t have a configuration to fit my watering grids ( and they were expensive I might add). So you did give me good tips to help with my final decision. Tks much

[@clearwater2134]

I live really close to you. Anyway, I spray painted my raised beds, so much nicer to have vibrant colors and yuck metal. Plus it keeps them cooler to the touch.

[@WildFloridian]

Love that! Adding color to the garden is a must!

[@therightway2130]

I have gray and navy beds, same as my interiors. Personally, I think too much color is distracting from the important part of the garden, the plants.

[@kigeliakitten]

Fun! I am going to remake my pollination garden into a cottage garden style as well.

[@WildFloridian]

Wonderful! We're on this journey together!

[@su0019]

hey im planning to move to sebring florida to retire. my question is can we grow mangoes there? does it rain there enough? thank you

[@Chocamatoes]

As always great information. Thank you. ❤

[@WildFloridian]

Thank you ☺️

[@billyinwaves]

The whole idea of using metal for raised beds is completely dumb. They just get too hot and the plants get to think their growing period is over, and so the plants quickly bolt. Wood is much better as a raised bed frame, even though it eventually rots. Wood is so much better for temperature control, and for moisture retention. With wood, you can also control Spring and Autumn (Fall) temperatures with covering frames.

[@WildFloridian]

I hear you. And based on your comment, I assume you live up north. Northerners tell me their wood mulch takes two to three years to break down. Here in the sub/tropics, it takes 6 to 9 months. Wood frame beds break down extremely fast in this climate due to high moisture and termites. In order to make wood beds make any financial sense / not have to spend lots of effort on them, you have to treat the wood which adds chemicals that are not food safe. Also our vegetable season is fall to spring and we temperature control for winter (if at all)… which means the heating impact of metal is beneficial. In summer we move to tropical crops which do well with the heat. So I understand your thought process, consider that different parts of the world have different needs. Happy Gardening

[@DJBrown-nl8ls]

What is under the bed you replace and what is under the new beds

[@cbizkit84s61]

"Some northerner is watching this" Yes. Yes I did laugh...lol I love the depth of this video. I'm in the market to getting these going. I most definitely do not want to do to the Amazons...

[@WildFloridian]

Howdy northern neighbor 👋 ☺️

[@FloridaFoodForest]

I always wondered how hot these would get in the sun in Florida summers

[@WildFloridian]

I’ve got some temperature gages to test them out this summer.

[@FloridaFoodForest]

@@WildFloridian Awesome! Keep us posted 😊

[@arkrainflood]

what about applying anti-rust paint to the metal ?

[@Leah-yz4rj]

This was very helpful. Thank you!

[@lauraganey6010]

How safe do you feel olle garden raised beds are?

[@timmcquerry6068]

But those do look Good 👍

[@timmcquerry6068]

I Do appreciate the way they make their corners! And Thanks Florida garden Gal,I now know how to pronounce the name of that Company 😀.

[@tonesmac2208]

ONCE U BUY THE METAL BEDS, COAT BOTH SIDES WITH TWO COATINGS OF VASELINE.

[@meghan4267]

Why? And do you do it before the coating?

[@bogdanwindy9670]

Where can I find the exact same one that you have? The link takes me to a different kind.

[@WildFloridian]

I just checked. The link is correct. They are out of stock. I don't know why they don't show that on the website. I actually reached out to the company and they said they are out of stock but have more inventory being manufactured now. Other brands may have the same-ish bed... because VegeGa actually makes the beds for those companies. If you can wait, I would check back in a few weeks and see if they have them back in stock. Just make sure you avoid the brands (Best Choice Products, Savannah, and there are a few others) that look similar and are sold on Amazon. Those have corners that totally rust.

[@GailWindz]

Good morning!

[@WildFloridian]

Good morning Gail!

[@barlowsmith6242]

Those beds are no good they heat up like ovens they are sharp and most people on U tub promoting them are paid to do so

[@WildFloridian]

These particular beds don't heat up as much as you would think. I covered this in another video. I live where it gets in the upper 90s in the summer, zone 10b, and I peak at UV index 13. Next time I do a video I'll have some video footage to show of the temperature differential. The edges in general are pretty good. My background is Mechanical Engineering and my professional career is working in manufacturing. I have years of experience looking for sharp edges in machines that cause first aid or worse incidents. On occasion I found some edges that might cause a paper cut but this was rare, but no burs. And compared to other brands, these are significantly better. On paid promotion, KZbin requires you to designate your video as paid advertising if you are paid by the company to promote their product. That's why you don't see the designation on my video, the company didn't pay me to create or promote their product.Often times KZbinrs and companies get around this with exchange of good... i.e. they send you some beds and you make a video. The company VegeGa didn't send me these beds. I bought them (no special code or discount). Now my link is an affiliate link, which means I do make a commission if you purchase a bed. But if you noticed, I did mention equivalent brands that have equivalent features and quality. Hope that helps clarify for you and those reading the comments. :D

[@kevinhipps1236]

​@@WildFloridiansmackdown