Soil for a 3 × 3 ft bed at each depth
Whole bags are rounded up. The bed’s wall height is not the soil depth: measure the depth you plan to fill.
| Soil depth | Cubic feet | Cubic yards | Bags of ¾ ft³ | Bags of 1 ft³ | Bags of 1.5 ft³ | Bags of 2 ft³ | Bags of 3 ft³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 in | 4.5 | 0.17 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 8 in | 6 | 0.22 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| 10 in | 7.5 | 0.28 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| 12 in | 9 | 0.33 | 12 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 3 |
| 18 in | 13.5 | 0.5 | 18 | 14 | 9 | 7 | 5 |
| 24 in | 18 | 0.67 | 24 | 18 | 12 | 9 | 6 |
Measure inside the walls
The table uses the full 3 × 3 ft. If that is the outside size of a wooden bed built from boards 1½ inches thick, the growing space inside is 33 × 33 inches. At 12 inches deep that holds 7.56 cubic feet, 16% less than the table. Metal and composite walls are thinner, but corner posts and braces still take space, so measure between the inner walls before you order.
Beds sold at 3 × 3 ft
These are the beds we list in this size. A maker’s stated capacity often differs from the table because the inside is smaller than the advertised size or the maker assumes a different fill depth.
- Gardener’s Supply Sustainable Raised Beds6 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 10.5 in walls, 10.5 in planting depth. The maker states 7.8 cubic feet.
- Birdies Medium Modular Raised Bed, 15 in tall8 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 15 in walls. The maker states 10.8 cubic feet.
- Birdies Medium Modular Raised Bed, 29 in tall15 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 29 in walls. The maker states 21.6 cubic feet.
- Epic Small Modular Metal Raised Bed, 15 in tall8 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 15 in walls. The maker states 11.3 cubic feet.
- Epic Small Modular Metal Raised Bed, 29 in tall15 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 29 in walls. The maker states 21.8 cubic feet.
- Gardenary 12" Tall Cedar Raised Garden Beds12 in walls. The maker does not state a soil capacity.
- Gardenary 18" Tall Cedar Raised Garden Beds18 in walls. The maker does not state a soil capacity.
- Gardenary 24" Tall Cedar Raised Garden Beds24 in walls. The maker does not state a soil capacity.
- Arrow GROW IT Galvanized Raised Garden Beds9 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 17 in walls. The maker states 12.75 cubic feet.
- Greenes Fence Premium Cedar Raised Beds6 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 11 in walls. The maker states 8.3 cubic feet.
What to plant in a 3 × 3 ft bed
Four planting layouts drawn to scaleA 3 × 3 ft bed holds 9 heads of lettuce, 144 carrots or 1 trellised tomato at Colorado State University Extension’s spacings. See a salad bed, a tomato and basil, and roots and onions with every plant counted.Work out your own bed
Open these measurements in the soil calculator to change the depth, add more beds or split the fill into a mix. To compare the cost of bags with a bulk delivery for 0.33 cubic yards, use the bagged vs bulk soil calculator.