30 Minute Flowerbed

Flowerbeds are an easy way to beautify your home. A stone border around a bed not only increases the aesthetic beauty, but retains water, increases the ease of mowing around the bed, and provides a permanent foundation that will last a long time.

Step 1: Things You Will Need

Tools You Will Need:

- Shovel

- Wheelbarrow

Materials You Will Need:

- 23 Concrete Wall Blocks

- 1 Wheelbarrow load of dirt

- 1 Wheelbarrow load of mulch

- Your choice of flowering plants

Step 2: Preparing the Area

Whether you have an existing flowerbed you are enhancing, or you are making one for the first time, the first thing to do is to prepare the area. Remove any obstructions from where you will be making your flowerbed. Then, using a shovel or hoe, level the ground so that your blocks will lie nice and even when you form your flowerbed.

As 23 blocks in this Instructable will form a flower bed approximately 4 feet long by 2 feet wide. If you are starting from scratch, laying our a 4 foot by 2 foot square will help keep everything aligned.

Step 3: Place the Base Level of Stones

Beginning in the middle front of the flower bed, place one of the concrete building stones. Ensure that the stone sits firmly on the ground and does not rock. You may need to step on the stone so that your weight helps seat it. Do not strike the stone with any object, as this may cause cracking or shattering.

Once the middle stone is in place, place two stones on either side, ensuring the backs of the stones form a straight line and that the tops are level. Use the shovel to add or remove dirt from under the stones to achieve the correct level and that they are firmly seated.

Step 4: Place Corner and First Side Stones

After the front three stones are positioned, place one stone in the center of the side of the bed. Next, place one stone on the corner and align so that the back corners touch both the front stone and the side stone. You may need to slightly adjust the side stone by moving it inward toward the center of the bed or outward.

Continue around the side positioning a stone on the back corner of the bed. It should be symmetrical to the stone on the front corner.

Once the stones are in position, ensure the tops are level and they are firmly seated by adding or removing dirt from beneath them.

Step 5: Complete Other Side of Foundation

Move to the opposite side of the box and place the side and two corner stones ensuring that they are level and firm as on the other side.

Step 6: Complete Back of Foundation Stones

Place the three stones on the back of the bed. It may be necessary to move the side stones in slightly to ensure the stones fit snugly together.

Step 7: Place Top Layer

The building stones have a lip on the back that allows them to lock together. This also provides consistent spacing from the front of the bottom stone to the front of the top stone.

Begin by placing the top stone in the front center of the bed with the center of the top stone aligned with the joint in the bottom stones. Simply continue stacking the stones around the wall ensuring that the lip on the back is behind the bottom stone and snug against the back. As you work your way around adjust the rotation of the stones so the edges are touching. The gap between the sides of the stone will vary depending of the location around the bed.

The stones are sized such that if twelve stones are used on the foundation row, eleven stones will form the top row with the lip of the top row snug against the back of the bottom row.

Step 8: Add Mulch and Bedding Plants

Finally, add mulch and/or top soil to fill the bed. If this is a new bed, add your choice of bedding plants.

ENJOY!