How difficult is it to make a raised planter box for herbs?

[pete6032]

Question in title. We have rabbits everywhere and I'd like to grow some herbs outside. I could buy something from the local big box for $100 or build something myself. I have some of the basic tools like a miter saw, circular saw, driver, etc. Would it be less expensive to make my own or should I go with something from the store? Any ideas on finding plans or the type of wood to use?

 

[BoomerD]

It's recommended that you DO NOT use pressure treated lumber. I know the more modern products don't have the same toxic chemicals in the treatment that they did once upon a time, but still...I'd rather not use chemically treated lumber for food growing boxes.
I don't know where you're at...but I used redwood when we were in CA, and cedar here in WA.

As far as keeping the rabbits out of your crop...just building a raised bed won't do it...UNLESS you put "legs" under it and raise it 3 feet off the ground. (here that would become a deer smorgasbord.) You'll have to put some kind of barrier...chicken wire, plastic mesh...something to physically keep the critters at bay.

 

[lxskllr]

If you factor your time into it, you'd probably be even money, or a little more expensive to do it yourself. That doesn't apply if you find it an enjoyable project. Aside from building out of wood, you can also consider repurposing junk. Used tracks from skidsteers, bathtubs, watering troughs... Keep your eyes open, and see if anything looks interesting. If you want a new hobby, and live in an appropriate area, you could get into chainsaw milling. It's hard work, but wood can be had free. Mill out whatever you need, out of whatever wood, and consider it disposable.

 

[Greenman]

Use cedar fence boards, make them any size you like. It's elementary carpentry. I've built a dozen or so planters for our back yard. There is about $25 worth of material in this one.
Simple rectangular planters are very simple to build, and very cheap as long as you use fence boards. Small planters can be assembled with 1.5" narrow crown staples, larger planters should be assembled with wood screws. There are several youtube videos that show the step by step process.

 

[herm0016]

Use cedar fence boards, make them any size you like. It's elementary carpentry. I've built a dozen or so planters for our back yard. There is about $25 worth of material in this one.
Simple rectangular planters are very simple to build, and very cheap as long as you use fence boards. Small planters can be assembled with 1.5" narrow crown staples, larger planters should be assembled with wood screws. There are several youtube videos that show the step by step process.

nice design. may have to copy that.

 

[bbhaag]

Question in title. We have rabbits everywhere and I'd like to grow some herbs outside. I could buy something from the local big box for $100 or build something myself. I have some of the basic tools like a miter saw, circular saw, driver, etc. Would it be less expensive to make my own or should I go with something from the store? Any ideas on finding plans or the type of wood to use?

What herbs are you going to plant? It has been my experience that a lot of herbs are rabbit resistant.

Before you go spending money on building garden boxes maybe consider planting them in the ground or cheap plastic pots that can be found at places like Menards or Home Depot. Whatever you decide to do make sure you use a quality potting mix like Ferti-lome or Fox Farm.

 

[pete6032]

What herbs are you going to plant? It has been my experience that a lot of herbs are rabbit resistant.

Cilantro, basil, mint.

 

[bbhaag]

Cilantro, basil, mint.

Rabbits won't eat any of those. If your objective is aesthetics then by all means go all in with cedar boxes but if you are on a budget get some cheap plastic pots and fill them with a quality potting mix. Especially if this is your first time growing herbs.

I recommend 10" or larger pots. I use ceramic pots in my herb garden now but when I first started I was on tight budget so cheap shit from the box stores helped fill the gap.

Anyway, here's a photo of Shelby sniffing around on some lemon grass. French tarragon, rosemary, mint, basil, and several other kinds of herbs are also grown in pots.

 

[sdifox]

Set some traps and you can have rabbit ragú
Just stick some plastic forks around your plants, similar to shrubs with thorns. Pointy side up in case it is not obvious.

 

[Greenman]

nice design. may have to copy that.

I bought the plans for five bucks, it was easier than starting from scratch. Though I did make a couple of modifications.
I actually sold a couple of them for $115 a pop.
I have three elevated planters that are roughly 2'X3'. I still have to build a mini water tower, I've been putting it off because it's going to be a pain in the but to build. Using 8/4 rough sawn white oak.

 

[PowerEngineer]

Rabbits won't eat any of those. ...

Hmmm... Not too sure about that. I optimistically planted a wide range of herbs (including cilantro and basil) in a ground level garden a few years ago, and everything except the rosemary had been eaten down to the ground in just days. Not by deer; only other suspects other than rabbits would be similar sized critters (e.g. raccoons, possums, skunks). But I'm pretty confident in blaming the rabbits.

 

[mindless1]

Rabbits will only eat smelly herbs if they have nothing better to choose from. They'd rather have dandelions, clover, and other misc grasses instead.

It's funny how FUD works. People who don't know, will try to tell you that there is a risk to use modern pressure treated lumber because they're just erring on the side of conservative caution, with no evidence that anything harmful ends up in consumable portions of plants.

There is no problem using modern pressure treated wood (modern as-in, less than 20 years old, the EPA banned arsenic in pressure treated wood for residential applications back then). Anything you'd find today is going to have copper and a fungicide, and those used aren't considered toxic or carcinogenic in levels present in adjacent soil. In concentration they would kill the plants long before there were levels harmful to people so it just isn't an issue.

Cilantro, basil, and mint don't need a lot of soil so you have a wide variety of designs you could use, though some consideration of wind protection and sufficient soil to hold enough moisture might be important if in a hot and/or dry climate. You don't want to have to water more often than once a day and ideally not that often. I mean when they reach full size, obviously you won't need to water that often when they are small.

 

[BoomerD]

Rabbits won't eat any of those. If your objective is aesthetics then by all means go all in with cedar boxes but if you are on a budget get some cheap plastic pots and fill them with a quality potting mix. Especially if this is your first time growing herbs.

I recommend 10" or larger pots. I use ceramic pots in my herb garden now but when I first started I was on tight budget so cheap shit from the box stores helped fill the gap.

Anyway, here's a photo of Shelby sniffing around on some lemon grass. French tarragon, rosemary, mint, basil, and several other kinds of herbs are also grown in pots.

View attachment 99822

Where I live we have deer...and deer...and deer...THOUSANDS of deer. Seems like everyone buys plants that are on the "deer resistant plant lists" only to find out, the freakin deer don't read those lists. I suspect rabbits are the same. If they're hungry enough, they just might eat it. The best protection is a physical barrier. Fencing of some kind that the critters can't push their way through...or gnaw their way through.
We had one of those "designer" pear trees with 4 different types of pears grafted onto it. the previous owners had a lightweight makeshift "fence" built around it with plastic "bird mesh" to keep the deer out...didn't work very well. The bucks stuck their antlers in the mesh and tore it to shit. (plus the bears just laughed at it...tore their way through and ate all the pears they wanted) I replaced the bird mesh with galvanized chicken wire and 2x4s. That kept deer and bears out...then, a couple of years later, I gave the pear tree to a neighbor.

 

[Greenman]

Rabbits will only eat smelly herbs if they have nothing better to choose from. They'd rather have dandelions, clover, and other misc grasses instead.

It's funny how FUD works. People who don't know, will try to tell you that there is a risk to use modern pressure treated lumber because they're just erring on the side of conservative caution, with no evidence that anything harmful ends up in consumable portions of plants.

There is no problem using modern pressure treated wood (modern as-in, less than 20 years old, the EPA banned arsenic in pressure treated wood for residential applications back then). Anything you'd find today is going to have copper and a fungicide, and those used aren't considered toxic or carcinogenic in levels present in adjacent soil. In concentration they would kill the plants long before there were levels harmful to people so it just isn't an issue.

Cilantro, basil, and mint don't need a lot of soil so you have a wide variety of designs you could use, though some consideration of wind protection and sufficient soil to hold enough moisture might be important if in a hot and/or dry climate. You don't want to have to water more often than once a day and ideally not that often. I mean when they reach full size, obviously you won't need to water that often when they are small.

Interesting thoughts about the PT material. As a contractor, disposing of scraps of PT was a very real problem as it's designated as hazmat in California. Many land fills wouldn't allow it, the few that were equipped to handle it charged a premium.

 

[jmagg]

We got 2 - 3' x 6' x 18" ceder boxes a couple yrs ago, from a boy scout fundraiser for 100 bucks each. Each box consists of 54 LF, 1/2 inch thick cedar plank, with small cleats in the corners. I had to modify the middle of the boxes to stop bowing. You may possibly check for similar fundraisers, i highly doubt I could buy those few materials for under 100 now, or even then. Each box volume is 1 cubic yard.

 

[Greenman]

We got 2 - 3' x 6' x 18" ceder boxes a couple yrs ago, from a boy scout fundraiser for 100 bucks each. Each box consists of 54 LF, 1/2 inch thick cedar plank, with small cleats in the corners. I had to modify the middle of the boxes to stop bowing. You may possibly check for similar fundraisers, i highly doubt I could buy those few materials for under 100 now, or even then. Each box volume is 1 cubic yard.

Almost certainly made out of fence boards, which sell for under $4 each today, so about $36 in material.
I looked at building planters out of 1x6 cedar lumber, at $2.25lf it's not worth it unless you're building custom planters for display.

 

[jmagg]

Almost certainly made out of fence boards, which sell for under $4 each today, so about $36 in material.
I looked at building planters out of 1x6 cedar lumber, at $2.25lf it's not worth it unless you're building custom planters for display.

I did a quick look at the Depot for 6'x 6" x 1/2 in cedar boards of any type and didnt see anything in that ballpark. Probably a regional thing. Everything in the NE seems to be worth twice as much.

 

[Greenman]

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Alta-Forest-Products-5-8-in-x-5-1-2-in-x-6-ft-Western-Red-Cedar-Dog-Ear-Fence-Picket-63023/205757688

Price seems to be nationwide.

 

[jmagg]

I'll stand corrected, good to know

 

[mindless1]

Interesting thoughts about the PT material. As a contractor, disposing of scraps of PT was a very real problem as it's designated as hazmat in California. Many land fills wouldn't allow it, the few that were equipped to handle it charged a premium.

1) They probably think it's easier to not place a burden on anyone to test the lumber to see what's in it, in the case of the old PT with arsenic. Never mind that arsenic is already present in soil and nobody is trying to bathe in or grow crops on a landfill pit.

2) Uneducated people would read that it has copper in it and that copper can be hazardous to aquatic life, without thinking through whether any significant concentration would ever make it there, nor considering that trace amounts of it are essential to plants, and other animals including humans.

3) It's CA. If they keep it up, all landfills will have to be designated hazardous for what is already in them and eventually, the state declaring itself uninhabitable.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

1) They probably think it's easier to not place a burden on anyone to test the lumber to see what's in it, in the case of the old PT with arsenic. Never mind that arsenic is already present in soil and nobody is trying to bathe in or grow crops on a landfill pit.

2) Uneducated people would read that it has copper in it and that copper can be hazardous to aquatic life, without thinking through whether any significant concentration would ever make it there, nor considering that trace amounts of it are essential to plants, and other animals including humans.

3) It's CA. If they keep it up, all landfills will have to be designated hazardous for what is already in them and eventually, the state declaring itself uninhabitable.

It's not bad guidance as a general rule to just keep away from anything with substantial amounts of unnecessary chemicals that can interface with water for planting. If one backs off the pressure treated lumber, before you know it people are growing carrots in car tires or makeshift cinder block pots.

Cedar is easy, cedar works. Friends peer pressure (har) friends to use cedar.

Side note, if you're ever unsure about your soil and can't do anything regarding replacing it with known good soil, plant sunflowers. They are remarkably good at absorbing all manner of horrifying chemicals, at which point they can be disposed of off-site.

 

[Greenman]

It's not bad guidance as a general rule to just keep away from anything with substantial amounts of unnecessary chemicals that can interface with water for planting. If one backs off the pressure treated lumber, before you know it people are growing carrots in car tires or makeshift cinder block pots.

Cedar is easy, cedar works. Friends peer pressure (har) friends to use cedar.

Side note, if you're ever unsure about your soil and can't do anything regarding replacing it with known good soil, plant sunflowers. They are remarkably good at absorbing all manner of horrifying chemicals, at which point they can be disposed of off-site.

I agree completely. The choice is chemically treated or not chemically treated, with the only benefit of chemically treated being slightly lower cost. This is a no brainer.

 

[mindless1]

It's not bad guidance as a general rule to just keep away from anything with substantial amounts of unnecessary chemicals that can interface with water for planting. If one backs off the pressure treated lumber, before you know it people are growing carrots in car tires or makeshift cinder block pots.

If you're worried about modern pressure treated lumber, realize that it doesn't release significant amounts of toxic chemicals, as much as tires do. If the cinder blocks contain fly ash, they may have more toxic heavy metals and other various coal combustion byproducts.

PT lumber has fungicide, which is something commonly applied to produce you find at the grocery store, and copper, something essential to life and found in soil already. The whole point in the reformulated PT lumber was to get rid of the harmful substances, yet so many people can't wrap their head around this.

It's not a no brainer at all to avoid modern PT lumber. It costs less and lasts longer when exposed to (perpetually damp) soil. The primary reason not to use it is that if you're not staining or painting it, (personal preference...) cedar looks nicer and if you're going to bother building something that you hope will last many years and be looking at it the whole time, what it looks like may be a high priority.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

PT lumber has fungicide, which is something commonly applied to produce you find at the grocery store, and copper, something essential to life and found in soil already. The whole point in the reformulated PT lumber was to get rid of the harmful substances, yet so many people can't wrap their head around this.

But i don't want fungicides leaching into my potting soil, fungus is great.

 

[sdifox]

But i don't want fungicides leaching into my potting soil, fungus is great.

Plastic liner?