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Large Patio Planter Box[8/4 Wide · 4ft · 5-Pack]
One pack. One build. All 5 boards used. • Makes 1 large planter
Shop Black Walnut 8/4 Wide · 4ft Pack Shop All Speciesselect 4' Lengths / 6-8"
How it goes together
Black Walnut
Hard Maple
Cherry
White Oak
Red Oak
Ash
Hickory
Ambrosia Maple
Sapele*
Padauk*
Purpleheart*
*Exotic — not available for shipment to US customers.
A big, solid hardwood planter for a shrub, a dwarf tree or a full herb garden on the patio. The 1¾" walls are two wide boards tall, so the roots stay cool in summer sun. A slatted floor drains freely and four feet lift it off the deck so nothing rots underneath. Everything is screwed together except the wall glue-ups, so it is a straightforward weekend build.
Quick Build — for experienced woodworkers
| Part | Qty | From | S2S size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Side pieces | 4 | Boards 1–4 | 30" × 5½" × 1¾" |
| End pieces | 4 | Boards 1–4 | 11" × 5½" × 1¾" |
| Floor slats | 4 | Board 5 | 10⅞" × 5½" × 1¾" |
| Cleat blocks (8 + 1 spare) | 9 | Three block blanks, ripped in three | 5¾" × 1¾" × 1¾" |
| Feet | 4 | Fourth block blank, cut in four | 2 13/16" × 2 11/16" × 1¾" |
Walls: sides are two 30" pieces and ends two 11" pieces, each pair edge-glued with exterior glue, grain running side to side. Ends fit between the sides.
Corners: no glue (cross grain). Four #10 × 3" exterior screws per corner through the side into the end, counterbored.
Floor: four 10⅞" slats across the inside with about ⅞" drain gaps, each end screwed down onto a cleat block glued and screwed to the inside of the side.
Feet: four blocks under the corners, grain matching the side, glued and screwed up into its bottom edge.
Finished size: 30" L × 14½" W × 12¾" H on its feet. Soil space about 26½" × 11" × 7½" deep (about 9 gallons). About 60 lb empty in white oak.
Before You Start
Shopping List
- 1 lumber pack — 8/4 Wide · 4ft (6–8" wide, S2S) — white oak is the best choice outdoors
- Exterior wood glue (Titebond III)
- About 50 × #10 × 3" exterior-rated (coated or stainless) flat-head screws
- Landscape fabric or a plastic liner with drain holes
- Stainless staples
- Gravel for drainage
- Sandpaper 120 / 180 / 220
- Exterior oil finish (penetrating deck or teak oil)
Tools
- Saw for crosscuts (mitre saw or circular saw with a speed square) — with a stop block
- Bandsaw, or table saw with a sled and push block (for the blocks)
- Jointer, straight-line rip jig or hand plane
- Drill/driver, countersink bit, pilot bits, ⅜" counterbore bit
- 4 bar clamps, 36" or longer
- Cauls (straight scrap strips)
- Staple gun
- Random-orbit sander or sanding block
Why S2S only? The 6–8" wide 8/4 boards come S2S: both faces planed, edges rough. Plan on losing about ¼" per edge when you straighten them.
Our sizing assumptions: ⅛" per saw cut · 6–8" wide 8/4 S2S boards trimmed ½" each end and ¼" off each rough edge (5½" clean at the narrowest), planned at 1¾" thick · sizes drawn for the narrowest board in the pack. Wider boards give you a bigger offcut or a wider part — never a shortage.
Step-by-Step
S2S Lumber Pack (6–8" wide)
Surfaced 2 sides — straighten edges first
- 1 Prep the boards. Trim ½" off each end to remove any end checks. Joint one edge straight, then rip the other edge parallel (¼" off each rough edge is our planning allowance).
- 2 Cut the parts. Square one end of each board. Cut boards 1–4 into a 30" side piece, an 11" end piece and the rest, about 5¾", as a block blank. Cut board 5 into 4 slats at 10⅞". Use a stop block so matching parts match.
- 3 Glue up the walls. Joint the mating edges and edge-glue the side pieces in pairs into two panels 30" × 11", and the end pieces into two panels 11" × 11". Use Titebond III, grain running side to side. Clamp with cauls and leave overnight. This is the only edge glue in the box.
- 4 Make the blocks. On the bandsaw, or on a table saw with a sled and a push block, rip three block blanks into three strips each, about 1¾" wide — nine cleat blocks (one spare). Cut the fourth blank into four feet about 2 13/16" × 2 11/16". Never rip short blocks freehand.
- 5 Sand and seal the end grain. Sand every part 120 → 180 and round the outside edges. Brush a first coat of exterior oil onto all the end grain now — it soaks up water fastest.
- 6 Build the box. Stand the end panels between the side panels, flush at the corners. Pre-drill and drive four #10 × 3" exterior screws through each side into each end — two into each end piece — through ½" deep counterbores. No glue at the corners: the grain crosses there.
- 7 Fit the cleat blocks. Lay out 4 slats along the inside, about ⅞" apart and ⅞" from each end. Under each slat end, glue and screw a cleat block to the inside face of the side, flush with the bottom edge — two pre-drilled #10 × 3" screws each. Both grains run along the side, so the glue holds.
- 8 Drop in the floor. Set the slats on the cleat blocks and drive one pre-drilled #10 × 3" screw down through each slat end into its block. The ⅞" gaps drain the box.
- 9 Add the feet. Turn the box over. Glue and screw a foot under each corner, grain running the same way as the side above it, with two pre-drilled #10 × 3" screws up into the side's bottom edge.
- 10 Finish and plant. Give every face two coats of exterior oil. Staple landscape fabric inside or drop in a plastic liner with drain holes. Set the planter where it will live before you fill it — add gravel, then potting mix, then plant.
Why no glue at the corners? The ends' grain runs across the box and the sides' grain runs along it. Outdoors the wood swells and shrinks a lot, and a cross-grain glue joint would crack. Screws hold the corners and let the parts move.
Why cleat blocks, not one long cleat? Every inch of the pack goes into the walls and the floor. The leftover blanks make short blocks, one under each slat end. Each slat sits on two blocks, so the load goes straight down into the walls.
Why lift it on feet? Wood sitting on a wet deck stays wet and rots, and it stains the deck. The feet lift the planter 1¾" so air dries the bottom and water drains away.
Why pre-drill? Maple, oak and hickory split if you drive a screw without a pilot hole. Pre-drill every screw and countersink so the heads sit flush.
Make It Yours
- Cap rail: add a 1¾" cap around the top from a second board to shed rain and give a seat edge.
- Casters: swap the feet for four locking outdoor casters rated 75 lb each so you can roll it into the sun.
- Lighter box: plane the wall panels to 1½" before assembly to save about 6 lb.
Safety and Care
- Wear eye and hearing protection. Use a push stick for every rip under 4" wide.
- Rip the short block blanks on a bandsaw, or on a table saw with a sled and push block — never freehand and never between the fence and the blade.
- Use exterior-rated screws only — plain steel stains oak black. Wear gloves and a dust mask when sanding and when handling potting mix.
- It weighs over 150 lb when planted and watered. Set it in place before filling, and check a deck or balcony can take the load.
- Pre-drill every screw — hardwoods split without a pilot hole.
Frequently Asked Questions
The 6–8" wide 8/4 pack comes S2S (faces planed, edges rough). Straighten the edges with a jointer, a table saw and a straight-line jig, a track saw, or a hand plane.
White oak is the best choice in the pack — it resists rot and moisture well. Ash, maple and red oak work too but need a liner and a fresh coat of oil every spring.
About 9 gallons of soil, 7½" deep: a dwarf shrub, a patio rose, tomatoes, or a full herb garden. Deep-rooted trees need a bigger pot.
A liner or landscape fabric keeps soil in the slat gaps and wet soil off the wood, so the box lasts years longer. Make sure the liner has drain holes.
Planned offcuts only: about 3" off the end of board 5, plus one spare cleat block. All 5 boards go into the planter.
No. A 2ft board is too short for the 30" sides. A 2ft wide pack makes our desktop planters instead.
