Retaining wall back fill/base rock and pool base rock

We had a raised garden built along our new fence joined on one side by a deck. It's raised by about 1/2 a meter.

The way they did it was to use the fence as part of the retaining wall. However, they did add some reinforcing.

In your case, the posts may be too wide apart and you may not like the idea of using the fence for this in case of rot.

I suggest putting new posts into the ground and putting treated 4x2 along them to form the retaining wall. Put it as close to the fence as practical. Then line the dirt side of the wall with a suitable plastic (the kind that's used for building ponds). And fill up the ground to level it.

As for the area between the fence and the retaining wall, you could attach a run of 4x2 or 6x2 along the fence line to form a beam for which you can attach joists and lay some decking timber all the way along. If you raise it up about the dirt level you could use it as seating if it's wide enough.

Remember to add weep holes to the wall to allow the water out.

Alternatively, as you suggest you could use cinder blocks or even just pour concrete. Your choice may depend on price.

I think you're asking about width, and not depth. I'd simply excavate an inch or three under the sidewalk and fill it with your substrate, then set the wall tight to the sidewalk.

If this is not possible, build the base as wide as is practically feasible and compact it well. It's unlikely that you'll have problems with a three-course wall.