DIY Vertical Herb Garden ~ Part 1

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Here's my big project for the spring!... well, at least the start of it. I've been dying for an herb garden the last few years and finally decided I would make it happen. I originally found a garden similar to this at the store. There's no way I was going to pay a couple of hundred for one though!

***Update: Head over to Part 2

Vertical Garden Planter

So I started looking online for a few ideas and came across this cute planter. I decided to go with a mixture of the two.

Vertical Garden Herb

Materials:

• 12 ~ 1"x6"x6' pine boards {cedar would be better}
• 4 ~ 1"x4"x6' pine boards
• 2 ~ 1"2"x6' pine boards
• 3 ~ 1"x10"x6'
• 100 ~ #8 1¼" screws
• Pack of hinges
• 2 packs of locks
• Roll of aluminum screen 
• 15 ~ 6" pots
• And of course some herbs!

I started by lining up six of the 1x6x6s. Originally I had planned to have the Garden be 4 or 5 feet tall but decided to go with a full 6 feet. This would allow me an extra shelf plus save time cutting my 6 foot boards down.

I measured the width of the 6 boards together and cut a 1x4 down to the right size to create the back of the Garden. I repeated the process at the opposite end.

To create the sides I repeated that same process as the back using 2 of my 1x6 boards for each side.

Now it was time to attach the 3 pieces together. The hubby wasn't around for this step so I had a little help from some crates. :) I attached the back to the side pieces with a screw every foot or so.

 It all came together surprisingly easy!

Now it was time to add a little more structure to the Garden. WARNING: Be careful moving this piece around with just 3 sides!

I cut down 1x4s and attach along the sides and back on the inside of the Garden. These will support the shelves. I wanted one shelf at the top of the Garden to place additional plants and a shelf on the bottom for gloves, shovel, etc... garden tools.

I cut four of my 1x6s down to lay across for the shelves at the top and bottom, two on top and two on bottom. Now the Garden finally has some structure to it and can be moved easily without fear of breaking the side pieces. *** PLEASE NOTE: I did not do this step here but I should have stained the piece. Waiting until later gets pretty difficult reaching around all the shelves.

Now the tricky part.... building the shelves that will hold the pots at an angle. To make it easy on myself I decided to tilt them at 45° angles. I cut the 1x2s down to about 9 inches {so they're about an inch shorter than the shelves" and screwed them into place. I allowed a few inches between each shelf.

Everything's coming together! I cut down the 1x10s to fit within the Garden but there's an important step to take before attaching them in the Garden.

Bring on the power tools! Time to cut out some circles. I'll provide some tips for doing this in my Part 2 post.

Stay tuned for Part 2 where I'll wrap up the project; finishing up the shelves and dealing with my other issue... a bunch of DANG squirrels and chipmunks!!! Every time I've tried to plant something on our deck they come right over and dig it all up. So I came up with a plan to keep them away!

***Update: Head over to Part 2

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***While I'm thrilled to share my step-by-step directions, the good and the bad, these are intended for your personal use. I'm always happy to hear and see what my bloggers have been working on. BUT a lot of work goes into these creations and while I have no issues sharing so you are able to create the work for your precious homes please understand that selling an exact duplication of my designs is highly frowned upon. :( Please always be considerate of another artists work. Thank you!***