Project book · an afternoon

Build a cedar planter box

A 3 ft cedar box for flowers or herbs on the patio. Made from fence pickets, so it is light and easy to build.

How many planters?

planters

This fits in a car

About 111 lb of materials. Comfortably inside what a car carries (200 lb), so any shopper can take it.

Before you start

Wear safety glasses on the saw and keep your fingers well clear of the blade on short cuts — clamp small pieces instead of holding them.

What to buy — untick anything you have

Fencing

Lumber

Hardware

Soil

Tools — already ticked off, since most people have them

Tools

It lands in the shopping form, where you can edit anything and say what you think each thing costs. Nothing is ordered until you send it.

How it goes · about an afternoon · beginner

  1. Cut the dog-ears off, then cut four 36 in side pieces, four 12 in end pieces, seven 13 in bottom slats and four 11 in corner blocks.
  2. Screw two end pieces to two corner blocks to make each end, then join the ends with the long side pieces.
  3. Flip the box and screw the bottom slats across with a small gap between each so it drains.
  4. Staple landscape fabric inside so the soil stays in and the water gets out.
  5. Set it where it will live before filling it — full of wet soil it is too heavy to move — then fill with potting mix.

Something else

Build a raised garden bedMulch a flower bedPaint a roomPut up garage shelvingFix a patchy lawnBuild a fire pitMount a TV on the wallCookout for a crowd

Feeding people instead? The recipe book works the same way — pick a meal, say how many, every ingredient lands on the list.

Build a cedar planter box — everything for it, in one tap · DriverRuns