How to Use Milk Crates As Planters

Planter beds can be expensive, which makes it appealing to create them by recycling items from around your house. Milk crates make good planter beds because most smaller plants do not need more space than one cubic foot, and many people already have them around their houses. They look eclectic and allow plants like strawberries to root runners in the sides. Though they are heavy, they are also much easier to move than larger planters.

Milk crate

Soap

Water

Landscaping fabric

Pocket knife

Sphagnum moss

Bucket

Potting soil

Spade

Clean the milk crate with soap and water and allow it to dry. Spray paint it to match the color scheme in your garden, or leave it for an eclectic look. Use a pocket knife to cut a piece of landscaping fabric thirteen inches square and lay it in the bottom of the crate. Soak sphagnum moss in a bucket with water and press it against the walls of the crate to keep soil from falling out and to keep moisture in.

Choose a plant to put in the crate. Some plants, like spider plants and strawberries, have runners that can hang down sides and they take root in the outside of the moss through the holes in the crate. You could also plant a vine that spills over the sides, depending on the look you want. The crate also makes a good planter for tomato plants.

Fill the center of the crate with potting soil. Dig a hole in the soil with a spade and place your plant in the hole. Fill in the space between the side of the hole and the plant with potting soil.

Place the planter in your garden to complete the look. Water your plant thoroughly and watch for wilting so you'll know when to water it again. You want it to take root and establish itself.

You can make several milk crates into a raised bed by attaching them together with zip ties before you put the moss and potting soil in them.