I liked the look of the small rustic planter and simply couldn’t resist making another one, bigger and probably stronger too. Same as the small one, this one too is built of 1x7s, I also ripped some 2x3s in half for the legs and the bottom rails. I used screws instead of nails and drainage slots instead of drilled holes. Very heavy and deep box, ideal for plants with longer roots. It’s supposed to last 3 years, maybe longer.
The first thing to do was to rip the 2x3s in half and next cut them to length. Then I cut the 1x7s – four groups of different sizes due to the overlapping I was going to use on corners.
I put everything together using screws. First I only used a single screw for each end of a board, that way the box squared itself up when placed on its legs. Then I reinforced each corner with more screws. Next, I cut the bottom rails and the bottom boards to size.
Instead of drilling holes for drainage, I spaced the boards from each other and covered the gaps with plastic drywall mesh, fixed with staples. That way the drainage was improved making it better for the plants and extending the planter’s life.
I moved onto the top – I ripped the 1×7 in half and installed the cap boards. Overlapped sides determined the shape of the cap boards as well. Normally I would cut mitres, but simple butt joints looked much better for this application. I tried to alternate the long boards with shorter ones, starting from the bottom up to the top, including the cap boards as well. I got some end grain facing towards the garden, which looks good and makes the box more interesting.
I moved it out to the garden and filled it up with topsoil and compost. That way another planter was finished and more plants grew in my rocky corner. It’s not easy to place something with 4 legs on that surface, keep it levelled and stable, but it can be done. Where there’s a will there’s a way!
I placed the small rustic planter and the yellow stand next to it and the project was finished. Just in time as spring was just around the corner.
