This picture is an actual photo of the container garden I made out of reclaimed shipping pallets...
So you think it’s too late to get started on a container garden?
Wrong.
Lots of herbs and vegetables can be planted through late summer, you just have to know which ones.
I got my container garden built and planted about 3 weeks ago. I
wanted to go all organic with my garden, so I planted a variety of Bonnie plants that I found at my local Home Depot.
Unfortunately the pickings were slim as far as the organic Bonnie
plants went, but that’s probably because I was getting quite a late
start on this new garden.
Building a Planter from Reclaimed Pallets
For this container I more or less followed these Instructable instructions I showed you last month in 3 Free Container Garden Plans Using Reclaimed Pallets.
"No Nail Pulling Required"
One of the biggest hassles of working with reclaimed pallets is
breaking them down. They’re usually nailed together with nails that have
screw-like thread on the end, and the thin planks splinter when you
attempt to pry them out.
This particular plan was touted as the "no nail pull method"...but was it really?
Yes, for a while.
Since I don’t have a table saw, I bought a $6 carbide blade for my circular saw
to cut through the nails, which worked great until I dulled it
completely about half way through the project. Luckily the blade was
still sharp enough to cut off the slats, just not cut through the
stubborn nails.
No problem, all i had to do was hammer them back into the support
pieces (which are the pieces you can see at the top and bottom of each
side of the planter)
Building Your Own
Simply follow the instructions in the instructable above and you’ll
be ready to plant in no time. It took me about 3 hours to construct
mine...and most of that was spent in the breakdown process.
True, a table saw WILL make the job much easier, but you can use a circular saw as I did if you don’t have one.
ALWAYS be sure to salvage non-pressure treated pallets
if you plan on turning them into a container for planting. Pressure
treated lumber will leach the chemicals used to treat it into your dirt
and hence, your veggies.
What are you going to plant for a late summer garden?