Gardening continues to be a favorite pastime, and more gardeners are discovering that raised beds make it easier. What's not to like about bringing plants to a higher level so you don't have to bend down and work on your knees? You can grow flowers, herbs and vegetables and work the soil while sitting on a ledge - a major plus for anyone with a bad back or not-so-bendable knees. You can design and locate the raised garden bed where the growing conditions are best.

You'll find a variety of raised bed systems sold at lawn and garden centers, in gardening catalogs and online, where we found several at eartheasy.com. They offer raised garden beds made of cedar, recycled plastic or composite material with a system of timbers that connect with anchor joints and screws.

To install the bed, first find a level surface. Slide the timbers into the joints and use the zinc-plated steel screws to secure them. The anchor joints are pressed into stacker joints in the ground. To help drive the screws, it's handy to have a power drill.

A 2-foot-high, 4-foot-by-4-foot raised bed made of recycled material costs $450. The shipping cost is additional and varies depending on where you live (as do the costs of the soil, fertilizer and plants). To have a landscape service assemble it, fill it with soil, amend the soil and plant it, figure an additional $110.