KDOI Podcasting goes Green. We take an Ammo crate and turn it into a flower bed. 

 

Idea behind this project, I am not a green thumb, but my Mother loved daisies and my wife loves tulips. What better way to honor both women than by growing your own flower bed and making it out of an ammo crate. 

 

The ammo crate I found was in my shed at the house I bought back in 2014 from a retired Marine. You can buy ammo crates at any Army/Navy store, mine was a gift that the owner didn't know he was giving. Since my wife is a such a granola crunchy hippie type person I thought it best to repurpose the ammo crate into a flower bed. Plus I love seeing flowers grow in the yard and my wife has a vegetable garden and I built the beds for her garden.

You can personalize this as a gift for a loved one or just use it for herbs, vegetables, decorative plants or dump a gnome in there and call it done. 

 

Materials list

1 ammo crate, mine was 4' by 2' by2'

posting soil

flowers

fertilizer

landscaping paper to line the box

1by3 wood cut into 8 4' lengths

deck screws 1 1/4" and 2" 

drill and drill bits

paint or stain depending on condition of ammo box

sander and sandpaper various grits

drills with bits needed

 

other tools needed

Step 1

Prepare the crate, sand down all rough edges, clean out the crate from any debris, prepare the crate to take stain or paint

Step 2

cut down your 1x3 sticks to 4 feet tall, they will be your legs

post cut

Step 3

attach your legs using a butt joint and drill pilot holes into the wood and into the crate, then screw in your deck screws, ensure to sink the screws deep enough into the crate, but not where they will stick out into the box

lower leg attachment

Step 4

drill drainage holes into the bottom and sides of the crate

 

Step 5

paint or stain the legs and crate

Step 6

lay the landscaping paper down inside the box

Step 7

dig 4 holes for your legs to bury the legs into the ground for stability

Step 7.5

cut more 1x3 to stretch between the legs for added stability

Step 8

place compost and potting soil and fertilizer in the crate

Step 9

place your plants. 

 

 

Cost of project

Ammo box depends on how big you go, don't spend more than 20 bucks here, you can get some a flea markets or garage sales

wood 15.00 always get extra

screws 5.00 get a box for extra around the house

plants, depends on what you want

soil/fertilizer/compost 20.00 again try to get something that covers all three if you can

landscaping paper optional but I'd recommend getting some to protect the plants from the wood and for drainage 10.00

 

Lessons learned

Make sure the bottom of the ammo crate is good otherwise it will fall out with the weight of the soil and water

Make sure to drill pilot holes

Make sure you had your tetanus shot within the last 10 years