Cladded Planter

Let’s be honest – plastic can be a bit ugly in the garden. To get around this we cladded a plastic bucket in wood to make a planter out of it, and planted it with a fruit tree. Now our hidden plastic bucket will be part of the décor on the patio or in the garden.

PLANTING: Place a good layer of gravel at least 100mm thick in the bottom of the bucket planter for drainage, and then fill with good potting soil mixed with a handful of superphosphate or bonemeal as the soil medium for your fruit tree.

What you Need for your Planter

• 25-litre plastic bucket (one with straight sides)
• 31 wooden slats (35mm x 20mm x 450mm)
• 4 wooden legs (45mm x 45mm x 135mm)
• 1 wooden base the same diameter as the widest part of the top of the bucket (ours was 344mm in diameter)
• 4 x full-thread screws (4mm x 80mm)
• 31 full-thread screws (4mm x 40mm)
• 31 full-thread screws (4mm x 20mm)
• Wood sealer and paint brush
• Sandpaper

Tools

Cordless screwdriver and bit, 10mm drill bit, jigsaw, pencil

What you Do

1 Trace a circle on a piece of wood using the bucket as a template. (Ours measured 344mm in diameter.) Cut it out using the jigsaw. Sand the edges smooth.

2 Attach the legs onto the base as in the picture, securing from the top with 80mm screws.

3 Attach the wooden slats to the side of the circle, flush with the bottom and screwing each one in place with a 40mm screw.

4 Place the plastic bucket inside the cladding and secure each plank from the inside onto the plastic bucket, using the 20mm screws.

5 Seal with a good wood sealer, or paint.

6 Drill a few holes in the bottom of the bucket for drainage and then plant up the tree.