Container Garden

Last year G and I attempted a container garden and failed miserably. I mean it was a COMPLETE disaster. We were living in Boston and decided to do a plastic tub garden because we were on a budget and I wanted something that I wouldn't be sad about if it got left behind during our upcoming moves. We started two tubs with tomatoes, peppers, squash, and peas on our enclosed porch in April. We found out in May that we had to move to Cape Cod and the place we rented didn't have a porch so the tubs were relegated to the lawn at the back of the building. We patiently waited for our vegetables to grow but the cold spring evenings and the move had done a number on our plants. We got one tiny tomato and six measly peas. So this year I'm starting over. We have recently moved to the southeast, which means no more chilly spring evenings and lots of rain and sun. This go around I've drawn inspiration from here, here, and here and I'm determined to have a delicious and bountiful garden. G and I hunkered down and made some beautiful containers and we've started our seedlings indoors so in a few more weeks we will plant them in our new containers.

Supplies we used:
1 box of deck screws ($6)
12 pretreated pine fence planks ($19)

1 old pallet we picked up from a neighbor (free)
2 pieces of scrap wood from Home Depot ($3)

Sawzall or circular saw
Drill or screw gun


Total Cost: $28 for two 6X2 foot planters

Here is what we did:
For each planter we used 6 pine fence planks, 5 pieces of pallet (3 across the bottom and 1 on the front and backsides), and two pieces of scrap wood for the ends.
Step One: We started with the bottom using 2 fence planks and screwed in 3 pieces that we cut from a pallet. One on each end and one in the middle to allow for drainage when watering. The we drilled holes evenly across the boards to allow the water to drain out.

Lining the 2 fence planks up and measuring
the pallet wood to cut to size

After cutting the pallet wood to size we added three
pieces across the bottom to allow for water drainage

Holes drilled across the bottom

Step Two: We added two planks to the front side of the planter using screws and placed 1 piece of pallet wood (measured and cut to size) to make the front sturdier.

This is the bottom of the planter turned on its side
in order to screw the side plank in

We used 6 screws in three places across
the front of the planter to hold it together

Step Three: Before beginning the back side we measured the scrap wood to see what size to cut it to so that it would fit snugly between the boards, luckily it was a perfect fit and didn't need to be cut. Then we screwed in the ends before adding the back side planks to make sure to get a perfect fit. You will need two people for this part, one to hold the planks firmly against the scrap wood and one to set the screws.

This is the front of the planter and the sides
as we were screwing in the backside to fit snugly

Step Four: Repeat step one to create the back side of the planter, using the two planks (first the bottom then the top), the deck screws, and the pallet support in the center.

This is the finished product

And that's it! I can't wait to transplant our seedlings and show you the fruits (and vegetables) of our labor.