DIY hanging pallet planter

Pinterest is full of DIY pallet ideas. I have been checking them out for quite some time now.  I saw a vertical pallet succulent garden featured on BlogHer and I knew I had to make one! Succulents are one of the few plants I can keep alive for any length of time.

So I scouted around for a free pallet. I found one on the side the road and managed to get it in the back of the Honda. Then I dragged it through the house into the backyard. Whew! Those suckers are heavy.

I knew I wanted to actually hang the pallet on the fence. Some more online research and I found the best way to do this via Domestic Doozie’s post. Off I went to Home Depot and picked up 2 OOK French cleats. Each will hold up to 200 pounds (overkill I know).  I stained the pallet with leftover MinWax walnut color with polyurethane from a previous project. I stapled landscaping fabric to the back of the pallet. I also cut and screwed MDF to the bottom of the spaces to help keep the dirt in place.

Voila – hanging on my backyard fence. Many thanks to my sister for helping me lift and hang the pallet in place. Now here is where I departed from what most people do, at least on Pinterest. The majority of people lay the pallet flat and fill it with dirt and plants, allowing it to settle for a few days before placing it vertical against a wall.

I knew there was NO WAY we could lift the pallet if I had filled it with dirt and plants first!

After letting the pallet hang for a couple of days, just to make sure it would stay up, I filled the spaces with dirt. I waited another day or two before adding the succulent plants.  I bought only a few plants the first time around and have been adding more over the past week.

Of course I discovered this super handy idea for keeping the dirt in AFTER I did it the hard way!!

Now my sister wants one or more of these for her backyard fence.  I call this a Pinterest success.