Cedar Planter Box

So my mom celebrated her birthday this past Tuesday and I had been trying to come up with what I was going to make for her. Spring time is basically here and I got the fever. My mom loves to work in her yard and decorate outside, so I figured it would be the perfect time to make her a planter box. I I always enjoy building outdoor projects anyways. I wanted to build something a little different from the usual planter boxes and decided that a sort of Greene and Greene style would be cool.

This is really a simple project to build especially if you have a Kreg Jig. I started out with 4 1x4x8 cedar boards from the home store. I cut the short boards on all four sides 3 inches shorter to achieve the look I wanted and inset each end 1 1/2 inches. The cuts for the sides are as follows: four at 21″, four at 11″, two at 18″, and 2 at 14″. I also got to use my new planer to smooth out the rough surface on one side of the cedar boards!

 

I used 1 inch Kreg screws and outdoor wood glue for the assembly. I drilled pocket holes even across the joining boards and on the end of all the short boards from each side to screw the panels together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I cut the frame to fit around the bottom after assembly and the same way for the slats, just measure once the box is built and cut to fit. To make the perimeter of the frame I ripped a 1×4 down the middle on the table saw.

 

Make sure to leave a gap between the slats for drainage.

 

Once the bottom is in you can line it with plastic( I used a lawn and leaf bag and cut it down to fit) and fill it with dirt and the flowers of your choice!

 

 

Click Here to Download Plans for Cedar Planter Box