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Three small cedar boxes, stacked up a leaning ladder frame: the tiered planter puts a whole herb garden in a doormat's footprint, with every tier catching sun and the drips from the tier above watering the one below (plant accordingly — thirsty basil low, drought-happy rosemary high).
The entire materials bill is three fence pickets and two 1x2s. The boxes build picket-scrap style — bottom, ends, then sides CUT LAST TO FIT, because picket thickness varies and the side length is whatever your actual box turned out to be. The frame is two straight 1x2 back legs, a cross rail, and two 27-3/4" front legs cut at 30° both ends, PARALLEL, short point to long point — the rake that turns a shelf into a display.
The source built the whole thing with 1-1/4" galvanized staples from a cordless stapler, and for a piece this light that's honest construction — but note the upgrade in the final step: the upper boxes attach to the angled front legs with SCREWS from inside, 'recommended,' because those two joints carry each box's soil load down the rake. Staple the skins, screw the load points.
Cedar, no finish needed — or a garden-safe oil if you want to keep the color. Drill a few drainage holes in each box bottom before loading; stacked planters forgive nothing about standing water.
| Item | Qty |
|---|---|
| Cedar fence picket, 5-1/2" x 72"All three boxes. | 3 each |
| 1x2, 8 ftThe ladder frame. | 2 each |
| Galvanized staples, 1-1/4", or brads/screws | 100 each |
| Exterior screws, 1-5/8"The box-to-front-leg load joints — screws here, per the source's recommendation. | 8 each |
Overall cost: $. Lumber prices vary by region, species, and season, so we give a band rather than a figure we would only be pretending to know.
| Part | Qty | T × W × L |
|---|---|---|
| Box bottomsCedar fence picket | 3 | 5/8" × 5 1/2" × 15" |
| Box endsCedar fence picket | 6 | 5/8" × 5 1/2" × 5 1/2" |
| Box sidesCedar fence picketCUT LAST, to fit your assembled boxes — picket thickness varies. | 6 | 5/8" × 5 1/2" × 16" |
| Back legs1x2 | 2 | 3/4" × 1 1/2" × 24" |
| Cross support1x2 | 1 | 3/4" × 1 1/2" × 16" |
| Front legs1x2Both ends 30°, PARALLEL, short point to long point — the rake. | 2 | 3/4" × 1 1/2" × 27 3/4" |
Buy 4 boards at 8 ft.
2 boards
2 boards
Assumes 8 ft stock, a 1/8" saw kerf, and buying each part at its own width. Change the board size or kerf on the full board plan →
For each box: bottom first, then the two end caps, then measure YOUR box and cut the sides to fit before stapling them on. Build all three, then drill three or four drainage holes in each bottom — stacked tiers turn one soggy box into three.
Staple the two 24" back legs to the back of the bottom box, flush as shown, then add the 1x2 cross support 6" up from the legs' bottoms. This little H is the planter's spine.
Cut the two front legs at 30° both ends — ends PARALLEL, short point to long point, so the same lean lands flat top and bottom — and attach flush with the top of the back legs. The rake these set is the whole display geometry.
Position the middle and top boxes on the angled front legs and attach with screws driven from INSIDE the boxes into the legs — the source staples everything else but recommends screws here, and rightly: these joints carry wet soil down a slope.
Fill, plant thirsty things low and dry things high, and put it where the kitchen door can reach it mid-recipe.
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