My raised bed is 14 inches off the ground and my back still hates me

Built this thing last month in Tulsa, followed every plan online to the letter. Treated lumber, weed barrier, the whole deal. But I swear, whoever designed those plans must be 5 foot 3 or something. I'm 6 foot 2, and every time I go to pull a weed or check the soil, I'm bent over like a folding chair. My neighbor walked by and laughed, said 'nice planter box' but then he showed me his setup. He just stacks cinder blocks two high and calls it a day. Way cheaper, way easier to reach. Now I'm sitting here staring at my fancy tall box wondering if I should just tear it down and copy him. Has anyone else built something 'ergonomic' that ended up being worse than just doing it dumb and simple?

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the_diana25d ago

That planter box was made by someone who never actually had to use it, I think. Used to swear by the fancy ergonomic designs too, until I built one that came up to my chest and realized I was basically doing yoga just to water the tomatoes. My neighbor does the same cinder block thing, two high, and honestly it's perfect. Never thought I'd say this, but simple and low to the ground wins every time. Sure, it looks less impressive than a tall wooden box, but my back actually lets me enjoy the garden now. If I could do it over, I'd take the dumb blocks and save myself the lumber money.