Wood planter...

…made from extra cedar fence slats.

You can never have enough room for gardening! But sometimes you want something just a bit prettier than the Gardening: Self-watering Containers that I posted earlier. I think these do the trick!

Wood planter…

When we put up our wood fence, we noticed that we had some cedar slats that we weren’t going to be able to use. Some were warped, split or damaged some other way. Most had good portions still left and the idea of making firewood out of the good portions seemed wasteful. So, I held on to them. Fast forward to May 2022, I started thinking that planters in our front yard would be a fun project to do. And the cedar slats were the perfect material for the job.

The size:

The planters are 21 inches wide, 18 1/4 inches deep and 19 1/2 inches tall.

I used 2×4’s for the corners and predrilled the holes before screwing the pieces together. I put together the long sides first then screwed the side slats on. Once the box was completed I attached 1×4’s to the 2×4’s on the bottom, this left an area at the bottom for drainage and then added pallet pieces to close the bottom off. You could also use 1×4’s. I did not make feet, but now would be the time to make them and add them. Since I was placing them on gravel, I opted for longer pieces of 2×4’s that I could adjust as needed.

After the boxes were done, I moved them out to where they would be and then stapled weeding fabric to the inside of the box. And then started filling them with soil.

Since these planters are located on the west side of our house and will get the full blast of summer sun and heat, I decided to add water storing crystals to help keep the plants well-watered. After I filled the box about 1/3 I added some crystals. Then I added a little more after more soil.

Then it was time to add the plants. I opted for winter squash – then they will have lots of room to grow.