Four trips to Home Depot, 3 boxes of different sized deck screws, 2 crooked planter boxes, and 1 discarded planter. We have successfully completed our first big project involving wood, a saw, sanding, and a drill.
I have already filled our front steps with plants. Our back patio is a bit small and closed in, and I don't like it when it gets too crowded back there. I needed something that didn't take up a ton of space so that I always have herbs for cooking and so I can put seedings into a bigger spot before they're ready for their final container homes. Also, I grew everything from seeds this year, and most of them have really flourished so I needed extra space!
I have been looking for classes to take on woodworking or how to build stuff, etc. here in Nashville but have been unable to find anything! It was one of my goals for 29 in 29!! I figured that instead of waiting around for a class to pop up, I could actually start doing something!
Our planter ladder is so far from perfect. Some of the wood is split in the back of the planters because we used the wrong screws for the type of wood we chose. When we put the final product up, I could tell before it was settled that the top two planters were totally crooked! (We fixed those!)
This was such a fun learning experience!! The wood we used was fairly cheap, and the whole ladder is kind of small, so it was easy to make and will be easy to move. We were okay with making mistakes, and know what we need to do next time. For example, the side pieces that end up being flush against the outside ladder legs really need to be exact. Lets just say that there is some extra drainage space on the ends of the planters.... I also really wish some of the drainage holes drained into the planters below, I'll have to figure out how to incorporate that for next time! I didn't want to stain the wood because we will be eating from the planters, and I didn't want to take chances with chemicals in our food. I don't use chemicals (pesticides or herbicides) on any of my plants for our protection and also to support the beneficial bugs like bees, butterflies, and ladybugs! We will see how the wood stands up during this summer!
I've got four different types of basil, oregano, lemon thyme, parsley, kale, and mint. On the bottom two shelves, I have peppers and tomatoes sandwiched by herbs. I'm not sure how these will turn out, I might have to move them when they get bigger.
Our next project is going to be a ladybug house, thought it would be best to keep our projects small for right now! We still have A LOT to learn and I am looking forward to it!!
Do you have any advice for me?? What are your goals for this summer? Any big projects you're hoping to tackle?
UPDATE: Monday, June 8th - The garden planter ladder is still standing after 24 hours and has survived a thunderstorm!!! So far so good!
