Soil for a 3 × 6 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.
Bags of
| 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 | 9 | 0.33 | 12 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 3 |
| 8 in | 12 | 0.44 | 16 | 12 | 8 | 6 | 4 |
| 10 in | 15 | 0.56 | 20 | 15 | 10 | 8 | 5 |
| 12 in | 18 | 0.67 | 24 | 18 | 12 | 9 | 6 |
| 18 in | 27 | 1 | 36 | 27 | 18 | 14 | 9 |
| 24 in | 36 | 1.33 | 48 | 36 | 24 | 18 | 12 |
Measure inside the walls
The table uses the full 3 × 6 ft. If that is the outside size of a wooden bed built from boards 1½ inches thick, the growing space inside is 33 × 69 inches. At 12 inches deep that holds 15.81 cubic feet, 12% 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 × 6 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 Beds11 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 10.5 in walls, 10.5 in planting depth. The maker states 15.75 cubic feet.
- Birdies Large Modular Raised Bed, 15 in tall15 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 15 in walls. The maker states 22.5 cubic feet.
- Birdies Large Modular Raised Bed, 29 in tall29 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 29 in walls. The maker states 43.2 cubic feet.
- Best Choice 6 × 3 × 2 ft Metal Raised Bed24 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 24 in walls, 24 in planting depth. The maker states 36 cubic feet.
- Vego 17" Tall Modern Metal Raised Garden Beds17 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 17 in walls. The maker states 25.5 cubic feet.
- Epic Medium Modular Metal Raised Bed, 15 in tall15 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 15 in walls. The maker states 22.5 cubic feet.
- Epic Medium Modular Metal Raised Bed, 29 in tall29 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 29 in walls. The maker states 43.5 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.
- Land Guard Metal Raised Garden Beds, 12 in tall11 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the estimated capacity. 12 in walls. The maker estimates 16 cubic feet.
- Land Guard Metal Raised Garden Beds, 18 in tall16 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the estimated capacity. 18 in walls. The maker estimates 24 cubic feet.
- Land Guard Metal Raised Garden Beds, 24 in tall22 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the estimated capacity. 24 in walls. The maker estimates 32 cubic feet.
- Land Guard Metal Raised Garden Beds, 36 in tall32 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the estimated capacity. 36 in walls. The maker estimates 48 cubic feet.
- Land Guard Oval Metal Raised Garden Beds, 12 in tall10 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the estimated capacity. 12 in walls. The maker estimates 14 cubic feet.
- Land Guard Oval Metal Raised Garden Beds, 18 in tall14 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the estimated capacity. 18 in walls. The maker estimates 21 cubic feet.
- Land Guard Oval Metal Raised Garden Beds, 36 in tall28 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the estimated capacity. 36 in walls. The maker estimates 42 cubic feet.
- Anleolife Metal Raised Garden Beds, 18 in tall18 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 18 in walls. The maker states 26 cubic feet.
- Anleolife Metal Raised Garden Beds, 24 in tall21 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 24 in walls. The maker states 31 cubic feet.
- Anleolife Metal Raised Garden Beds, 30 in tall26 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 30 in walls. The maker states 39 cubic feet.
- Arrow GROW IT Galvanized Raised Garden Beds18 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 17 in walls. The maker states 26.25 cubic feet.
- Greenes Fence Premium Cedar Raised Beds11 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 11 in walls. The maker states 16.5 cubic feet.
What to plant in a 3 × 6 ft bed
Four planting layouts drawn to scaleA 3 × 6 ft bed holds 18 heads of lettuce, 288 carrots or 3 trellised tomatoes at Colorado State University Extension’s spacings. See a salad bed, tomatoes and peppers, 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 0.67 cubic yards, use the bagged vs bulk soil calculator.