Pam’s Occidental vegetable garden uses galvanized water troughs as raised beds, which are necessary in our area to keep gophers away from the plants. I have used these metal containers for growing raspberries — mainly to keep the canes from spreading. I really like the way the containers look — the metal is clean and bright in the sunlight. Installing them is easier than digging a raised bed.
Pam’s containers are arranged on a slope, so they are propped up on one end to keep them level. Holes were punched into the bottom of the container and it was then filled with two inches of gravel before the soil was added. She has tomatoes, lettuce and lots more growing in them. The height of the bed is good for working. Her garden also had the herb stevia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevia), which is very sweet and used as alternative to sugar.
Dale Dougherty 