DIY Wooden Planter Box: A Simple Garden Woodworking Project

Crafting your own DIY wooden planter box is a rewarding and creative way to elevate your indoor or outdoor space while indulging in some hands-on craftsmanship. Whether you’re a seasoned DIY enthusiast or just starting, constructing a wooden planter box offers practicality and aesthetic appeal. This article will explore step-by-step instructions and essential tips to help you create stunning wooden planter boxes that breathe life into your greenery and décor.

These wooden planters are easy to make and easy on the wallet. I made mine using scrap wood and some “spare” construction shims that I took from another project, but even if you bought all the materials new, it would still be a cheap project. There’s nothing quite as fulfilling to me as repurposing scrap wood for a fun project, especially if it means getting involved in some gardening!

Tools and Materials Needed

Essential Tools

To create your DIY wooden planter box, you will need a few essential tools. First, grab a measuring tape to ensure accurate dimensions for your project. A powered mitre-saw (or chop saw) is recommended, but this project can be completed with a hand saw. You’ll be using a few nails on this project, so grab a hammer, or if you have one a finishing- or brad-nailer.

For sanding down rough edges and achieving a smooth finish, keep sandpaper nearby. A foam brush will be needed to stain your planter. Clamps always come in handy, especially when gluing a project, and don’t forget about safety gear like gloves and goggles for protection while working with tools.

• Saw (either powered or hand-saw)
• Measuring Tape
• Pencil
• Foam Brushes
• Hammer (or finishing nailer)
• Quick-Clamps (recommended)
• Safety Glasses
• Work Gloves
• Rags

Required Materials

Gather all the necessary materials beforehand. Ideally choose a wood suitable for outdoor use; cedar is an excellent choice due to its durability against weather conditions. But don’t think that cedar is the only option – pine is cheaper and will work great indoors and even outdoors, it just won’t last quite as long as cedar. Avoid using treated wood, as the chemicals can leech into the soil, potentially affecting the plants.

• One (1×4) board at least 30 inches long
• One(1×6) board at least 42 inches long
• Wood Glue
• Wood Shims
• Wood stain of your choice – I used Minwax Early American
• 1.5-inch Finishing Nails

Cut List

Cut your boards before starting on assembly. Once the glue comes out you don’t want to be messing around on the saw!

• Two 1×6 cut to 20-inches
• One 1×4 cut to 20-inches
• Two 1×4 cut to 4 1/4-inches
• Cedar construction shims cut to 2 1/4 inch lengths (40-45)

Step by Step:

1. Precut your Wood

Decide how many planters you are going to make, and cut the wood per the cut list above. Don’t forget the safety glasses!

2. Attach the Sides to the Base

Our first step is to attach the two small 4 1/4 inch (1×4) pieces to the 20-inch (1×4) base piece. Use a bead of wood glue and nail 2 or 3 finishing nails straight up through the base into the end of each side piece. 

I used the brad nailer and air compressor, but a simple hammer would work here as well. If you plan on using a hammer, I recommend clamping the pieces to a table or workbench so that they don’t fall over when you take a swing with the hammer.

You do not need to wait for the glue to dry to move onto the next step, but be careful when moving the planter not to knock the ends off.

3. Attach the Front and Back

Once we have our two sides attached it’s time to add the front and back pieces.

Add a good bead of glue along the front and side pieces and lay the 20-inch (1×6) board across the front. Clamp and add a few finishing nails along the sides and bottom to hold your pieces in place.

Add a good bead of glue along the front and side pieces and lay the 20-inch (1×6) board across the front. Clamp and add a few finishing nails along the sides and bottom to hold your pieces in place.

Flip the planter over and repeat this on the other side. For the sturdiest results, leave the planter clamped overnight until the glue has set before moving on to the finishing touches.

4. Attach Shims

I just love the look that the little construction shims gave this project, it looks like a little cedar-shake house!

Add your first layer of shims over the face of the box in two rows. You are just placing them on the board to fill the front face. If there is a small gap between the top layer and bottom layer, that’s OK, you can ignore it. That gap gets filled when we add the next layer.

Align your shims on the front face of your planter so that they are all different size thickness, don’t match them up.  Lay them out so that they are well mixed up.

Once you have a pattern that you like, go ahead and lay a heavy bead or two of wood glue under each row and place the shims back in place. Don’t worry about nailing them, they will most likely just split and frustrate you.

5. Attach the Second Layer of Shims

The next step is to add the center row of cedar shims to the front of your wooden planter.  

Once you have the pattern set to the way you like it, go ahead and lay down a bead of glue along the center and put your middle row of shims in place.  You want to mix up the heights here, add some low, and some high to add a pattern and texture to your wooden planter.

Because the shims are different thickness, you’re going to find that they have difficulty fitting flat. Don’t worry about that, just add a bit more glue to those areas. This adds a bit of dimension, and that’s what we want.

Press the shims firmly into place. Clamping would be difficult because of the different heights, and nails are likely to split your shims. They are purely decorative, anyways, so I just let the glue do the work.

6. Sanding

This is a rustic project, so it doesn’t need to be sanded smooth. The rough texture of the wood actually enhances the look of the stain in this case. Just sand the cut edges where the saw made splinters, and you’re ready for stain.

7. Stain

Apply your stain of choice using a foam brush. Excess stain can be dabbed off with a clean rag. If your stain turns out too light, you can add a second coat to darken it. Allow your planter to dry per the instructions on your stain.