By Janna Schiavo of Sterilite Corporation
The second week of April is national garden week. A flower garden can add curb appeal to your yard and a vegetable garden can provide sustainable organic produce. Even if you don’t have a yard, a crate garden will allow you to enjoy the benefits of a garden. Crate gardens are ideal for urban farming, they fit nicely on an apartment balcony, or even if you have a yard they are an easy way to make a raised bed. Raised beds offer advantages such as precise control over the soil quality and better drainage compared to a regular gardening pot. In addition, the modular portable nature of the crate raised beds allow you move to your plants to get better sunlight or take them inside to protect from frost in the fall.
You will need:
Landscaping fabric
Crates, like the Sterilite Storage Crate
Potting soil
Mulch (optional)
There are two different methods you can use to create the lining: a sewing method that will be a little more work but has a neater appearance or a quick and easy no-sew method. These instructions are based on the Sterilite Storage Crate which has interior dimensions of roughly 14” length by 13” width by 10” height.
Sewing Method:
- Cut the fabric pieces
For each crate cut two pieces of landscaping fabric, a bottom piece that is 15” by 14”, and a continuous side piece that is 55” long and 13” wide. - Sew the side piece to the bottom piece.
Start by lining up a corner of the long edge of the side piece to a corner of the bottom pieces. You can pin them first to ensure they stay properly aligned while sewing.
- Sew along the final corner edge.
There should be one loose side of the lining where the 13” edges of the side piece meet. Sew along this edge to complete the lining.
- Fill with soil
The height of the liner should be taller than the crate so you can fold the edges over to prevent the liner from falling in as you fill with dirt.
No sew method:
- Cut the fabric pieces
You’ll want two pieces a bit wider than the crate so that there is overlap in the corners. For the Sterilite Storage Crate two pieces of fabric that are 16” wide by 36” long will work. - Lay the pieces inside the crate
Lay the first piece inside the crate leaving a little bit of an overhang on the edge. Then lay the second piece across the other crate in the other direction.
- Fill with soil
To prevent the liner pieces from falling into the crate as you fill with dirt you can use binder clips or clothes pins to clip the lining to the edge of the crate.
The garden crate offers increased drainage will protect the plant from overwatering which can cause the roots of your planets to rot. However you can have too much of a good thing, be sure to keep an eye on your plants to make sure the soil is not getting too dry. To help prevent the soil form over drying you can mix in a little mulch that will help the soil retain water and allow you to water less frequently. Adding mulch will also make the crate lighter and easier to carry.
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