Recycled raised planter frame

Suz said she wanted a big planter, raised off the ground so she could tend it easily. We have no actual dirt except for a small strip under the factory security fence which we've already planted with hundreds of peas and beans. So she needed a large planter to grow crops that don't like hydroponics.

The planter, part-filled with tubs.

I scavenged 8 x 20l polythene cooking oil containers (couldn't find the lids, buggerit) and hacked the tops off with a skillsaw. A couple of 10mm holes 50mm up from the bottom provide drainage, and a load of river pebbles hold a reservoir of water at the bottom of the container below the drains. The rest gets filled with potting mix. Planting tub x 8; 150 litres of soil where none stood before.

OK, so now we have a large plantable area, but it's not raised up off the ground. So I dismantled a couple of palettes and with the 2x4 from them and a length of preserved 2x4 from a previous project, built basically a bed frame. Suz didn't like the yellow colour of the tubs, so the frame is enclosed with scavenged timber. The bottom is slats, allowing drainage, which would have been hard to arrange without using the tubs.

The tubs also allow herbs with wandering roots to be kept separated, and things to be moved around individually if needed. I'll try to score some more identical tubs as backups.

As you can see, it needs a bit of wood preservative, but otherwise looks fairly functional. Another recycled success story!