How to Build a Terraced Wood Planter Bed
There are many ways to display your plants attractively, from landscaped planting beds to window boxes to container gardens. One option that displays your plants to their best advantage is the terraced wood planter bed. This type of planter can be viewed from all sides and receives sun from every direction. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- 4 lengths of 2x8 lumber, 6 feet long
- 4 lengths of 2x8 lumber, 5 feet long
- 4 lengths of 2x8 lumber, 4 feet long
- Spade
- Level
- Screws
- Drill
- Stakes or posts
- Hammer
- Chicken wire or hardware cloth
- Nails
- Organic compost
- Sand
- Peat moss
- Plants of your choosing
Instructions
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1
Use the spade to turn over and level a 6-foot-square plot of ground where you want to build your planter. Dig a trench along the outline about 3 to 4 inches deep and 3 inches wide.
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2
Screw the 6-foot 2x8s together at the ends to make a square box. Set it into the trench you made around the outer edge of your garden bed. Sink posts or stakes into the ground at each corner to give the box more stability.
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3
Line the bottom of the box with chicken wire or hardware cloth to keep burrowing critters from getting into to your plants. Nail the lining to the inside of the box to keep it in place and to ensure tunneling garden pests won't break through.
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4
Fill the box with a mixture of one part organic compost, one part sand and one part peat moss. Spread it out evenly, to just below the top edge of the box.
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5
Repeat Step 2 with the 5-foot 2x8s and center that box on top of the first.
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6
Fill the second box with the growing mixture just as you did the first.
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7
Repeat Steps 5 and 6 with the 4-foot 2x8s, creating a pyramid with the boxes.
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8
Plant flower, vegetable or fruit varieties of your choice in the terraced wood planter box. This planter box is perfect for growing strawberries, or planting different colored flowers on each level for a bright, colorful display.
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