Building Planting Boxes
May 2010

Executive summary: From start to finish, building the planting boxes required about 100 4inx4inx8ft logs, 500 6in nails and it took a little under 45 hours to assemble. I also had to build a small step between the South end of the backyard (on the side of the garage), and the North end of it.

Inception...

I mostly followed the plans, with only a couple of adjustements here and there.


The front yard...

... and the backyard.

"Soil" removal

The area around the garage was actually mostly gravel. I first tried making it work, but in the end I spent the money to get rid of it.


7 or so yards of gravely material being picked up after removal.


9 yards of replacement soil to be wheelbarrrow'ed over and then spread-out, leveled-out, and compacted down. This is when I discovered that the backyard is not flat. It has a downward slope (grrrr!).

Wood delivery

2 weeks after replacing the soil, the grass seeds have done well, and the logs were delivered.

Assembly

(Photo: Fatima Catalan)


(Photo: Fatima Catalan)



The new step...

Working in the light rain, lining the inside of the boxes first with plastic (6mil vapor barrier) and then with weed-block (protection against sharp shorvels)...

Soil delivery

Getting the soil delivered "blown in"...

Final result (front yard)


Final result (back yard)




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