Planter Box for Porch Rails

Beginner DIY Porch Planter Box

If you’ve been following my blog the past few weeks, you might be picking up on how much I love flowers and plants. Especially this time of year when everything is in full bloom!? So it shouldn’t come as a shock that I wanted to build something to hold MORE flowers!

I built a planter box like this a few years ago for Black+Decker’s blog, but this time I wanted to improve upon it.

Materials

This is definitely a beginner DIY project, so gather your materials and get to work!

• (1) 1×2*
• (1) 1×8*
• tape measure*(my personal favorite)
• miter saw* or circular saw*
• wood glue*
• drill/driver*
• hammer*
• small finish nails*
• 1-5/8″ exterior screws*
• 2″ exterior screws*
• plastic planter*
• sandpaper
• primer/paint/paint brush
• level*
• potting soil
• flowers

Cut Everything to Size

You’ll see in the video above, I used my miter saw at 45 degrees to get a ‘mitered’ edge. If you don’t have a miter saw or don’t want to cut 45s, you can also just cut it straight. Though, that will change the measurements slightly.

Once you have the 1x8s cut to size, use the same measurements to cut the 1×2. Cut an additional 1×2 to the inside length of your planter box. This will be the support that holds the plastic planter in place.

Assemble with Screws

Then use the 1-5/8″ exterior screws to assemble the 1×8 box. Attach the 1×2 trim pieces on top with the small finish nails.

To ‘finish’ my planter box, I decided to paint it to match my hand rail spindles. So first I sanded it all and primed it with exterior primer. Then followed that up with a little more sanding and a coat of my white exterior paint.

The planter box I had here previously was treated with a clear coat like you’d use on a wood deck. Just to give you another idea in case you don’t like the painted look!

Plant Flowers

While the paint dried, I got to work planting my flowers. I used some red salvias and green ‘creeping Jenny’ vines. I love the variation in height and color! It adds so much more than just planting one type of flower.

Mark and Hang

After the plants were planted and the paint was dry, I hung the wooden planter box on my handrails by first marking where the spindles were inside my box. Then I drove the 2″ screws through the box on the ground so just a tiny bit poked through the back. Then I held it in place on the spindles and finished driving one screw on the end before putting my level in place. When it was level I finished driving the rest of the screws.

Now all I have to do is water my fresh blooms every few days and enjoy the fresh pop of color on my front porch! What kind of plants are you planting and enjoying this season? Share in the comments below, please!

Thanks for Checking In! ~Chelsea

*This post contains affiliate links*