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Colorful knitting, crochet, latch hook and macrame from craft book author & designer Heidi Gustad.

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How-to: Cinder Block Planters

March 28, 2012 4 Comments

I love my apartment. I love that I have a yard that we only share with a couple people (who rarely use it). The only problem with my yard is that its soil isn’t very hospitable for growing a vegetable garden. Last year, I learned this lesson the hard way. So this year, I built a railroad tie flower garden. PS, railroad ties are treated with toxic chemicals that shouldn’t come in contact with plants intended to be eaten, so don’t make a railroad tie garden hoping to raise veggies in it!

In the spirit of further beautifying my yard, I decided to make a super mod planter out of cinder blocks. Full disclosure, I first saw the idea at one of my favorite architecture/home decor blogs, Freshome. Here’s my take on it; scroll down for the how-to:

Simple Cinder Block Planter (that can double as a retaining wall) at handsoccupied.com

Supplies

lots of cinder blocks! get a mixture of blocks with two holes and one hole

potting soil

some plants of your choosing

a couple of ceramic tiles

Directions

Arrange your cinder blocks in a pattern that’s appropriate for your space. Fair warning – cinder blocks are really heavy! I pulled most of the muscles in my body the other day when I was hauling them around my yard finding just the right place for my garden. I’m kind of an idiot sometimes.

By the way, if you need a retaining wall, a cinder block garden is a cute option to serve your needs!

Once you settle on a location and setup, you need to fill the openings that are going to be planters with potting soil. Sometimes the openings will line up. I had one opening that went down four layers of blocks-worth, and I realized I’d be wasting a ton of potting soil filling that deep opening. I had some ceramic tiles laying around and used those to add bottoms to the two too-deep openings I had in my arrangement.

Simple Cinder Block Planter (that can double as a retaining wall) at handsoccupied.com

 

Simple Cinder Block Planter (that can double as a retaining wall) at handsoccupied.com

Pot your plants in each opening as you see fit. I got a variety of colorful perennials, so they’ll come back every year. My yard doesn’t have any grass (wtf, landlord?), which had me dying for some color down there last year. I’m pretty excited about this so far, but I do think I’ll add more flowers as I find ones I like. The perennials in them now are all varieties that bloom in spring. I think it might be nice to get some that bloom mid-summer and in fall. If you have any suggestions for me for other flowers to incorporate, let me know!

Simple Cinder Block Planter (that can double as a retaining wall) at handsoccupied.com

Simple Cinder Block Planter (that can double as a retaining wall) at handsoccupied.com

Simple Cinder Block Planter (that can double as a retaining wall) at handsoccupied.com

Simple Cinder Block Planter (that can double as a retaining wall) at handsoccupied.com

Simple Cinder Block Planter (that can double as a retaining wall) at handsoccupied.com

Filed Under: Home Decor, How-to, Summer Tagged With: cheap, cinder blocks, diy, flowers, garden, gardening, retaining wall

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad is a craft book author, designer & creator specializing in yarn crafts like knitting, crochet, latch hook & macramé. Her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now.

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Comments

  1. EYA

    July 24, 2013 at 9:02 am

    Great diy concrete olanter idea…i will use in my village garden

    Reply
  2. Jen P

    November 19, 2014 at 7:36 pm

    I absolutely love this idea. I am just wondering how to keep the soil in the ones that stick out above ground like they do in the last photo?

    Thanks

    Reply
    • Heidi

      November 19, 2014 at 8:34 pm

      I’m so glad you love it! For simplicity’s sake, I just avoided putting plants in any of the openings that stick out above the ground, but I used ceramic tiles to line the bottom of the openings when needed in other parts of the planter.

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. 6 Creative Planters | creative gift ideas & news at catching fireflies says:
    May 7, 2013 at 1:12 pm

    […] you are tight on space,  this Cinder Block Garden is just the ticket and can pack a lot of punch.  Over on the Hands Occupied Blog, Heidi explains […]

    Reply

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi (she/her/hers), a craft book author & pattern designer specializing in knitting, crochet, latch hook & macrame. Really anything with yarn! ❤️  My work combines vintage and modern design elements, featuring bold colors and graphic motifs.

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knitting, crochet, latch hook & macramé
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It’s been a hot second since I showed my face or It’s been a hot second since I showed my face or reintroduced myself, so here goes! I’m Heidi Gustad, a craft book author, pattern designer, and tutorial creator who specializes in yarn crafts. Lately, I’ve been focused on releasing quality knitting videos and related blog posts to help teach things like the difference between provisional cast ons and how to fix common knitting mistakes. Next week I’m shooting requested crochet and latch hook videos, so h👀kers, your time is coming! And if you ever have tutorial requests, please let me know. ☺️
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TLDR: I’m Heidi. I design & teach yarn crafts. You can find tutorials on my blog (est. 2010) & You2be. I also have several knitting & crochet patterns + a book about latch hook available. / All of these can be found on my website, the 🔗 is where you’d think. 
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Are you a picker or a thrower? Do you knit Contine Are you a picker or a thrower? Do you knit Continental or English Style? Here’s a quick overview of the differences between the two most common knitting styles, including a side by side comparison. (A good one to save for future reference. 👍🏻) 
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Spent time with family this weekend down South. Go Spent time with family this weekend down South. Got some stitching in & felt spring for a minute, which was lovely. ☀️ 
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Which way do you knit? Picking, throwing, Portugue Which way do you knit? Picking, throwing, Portuguese, Shetland… how about lever style? 
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Today on the blog, we’re defining & comparing the two most common knitting styles: continental and throwing. They’re each known by a few names, and odds are one of them really is your grandmother’s knitting style (if she’s a western knitter that is). There’s a new video to help demonstrate the differences too. Another good one to save & share! 😉 
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