How to make your own Gutter Garden

Hestelle Robinson

 I spotted this article by Jayme Jenkins on aHa! Home & Garden and just had to share it with you.

 

 

 

Gutter gardens are a great way to take advantage of the vertical spaces around your home to grow flowers, edibles and create a stylish space divider or privacy screen without spending too much money.

 

 

How to make a hanging Gutter Garden 

 

Materials

• 1 – 8′ PVC white rain gutter cut into 3 36″ sections
• 6 – PVC white gutter end caps
• 2 – 1/8″diameter steel cables cut to desired length
• 6 – Cross Clamps
• 6 – 1/8″ diameter steel rods
• 2 – Galvanized eye hooks
• Potting soil and Plants 

 

Tools

• Cordless Drill with drill bit set
• Hand saw or hack saw
• T-square or straight edge
• Tape measure
• Permanent marker
• Level
• Eye protection 

 

 

 

 

Let’s get started

1. Determine the center of your gutters and draw a reference line (otherwise your gutter won’t hang right).
2. Mark and drill the holes for the steel cable rods. Find a drill bit the same diameter as the cable to minimize the wiggle room.
3. Space drill holes a few sizes larger to make sure you get good drainage (plant roots hate sitting in water for long periods of time).

 

 

 

 

Once you have all your gutter holes drilled, you’re ready to hang this bad boy. Be patient…we’ll be planting very soon.

1. Locate a spot that gets at least 4 hours of sun. I placed mine on the cross beams of a pergola I built a couple of years ago.
2. Drill pilot holes (a hole slightly smaller in diameter than the screw diameter) to make screwing in the eye hook a lot easier. Make sure the holes are the same distance as the steel cable so they hang straight down.
3. Slide the gutters through the holes and secure them with the cross clamps at your desired heights.  You’ll notice I placed mesh tape (normally used for drywall joints), left over from another project, over the drainage holes to keep the soil from seeping. However, I think the holes are small enough, this step is not necessary. I did it out of habit.
4. Secure the gutter with the cross clamps and half circle steel rods

 

 

Now you’re ready to fill it with organic potting soil and plant them with your choice of shallow rooted plants.  I found watering to be easier with a narrow spout watering can.  Hoses will blast your soil all over the place and rain-style spouts will water your plants and not the soil (note: water your soil NOT your plants).

 

 

 

What to plant in a Gutter Garden

 

Shallow rooted edibles and annual flowers should grow easily in a gutter garden, making this project perfect for small space gardens, like balconies, or just to add visual interest to an otherwise boring patio. 

 

Here’s a list of edibles to experiment with in your new gutter garden:

• Arugula, spinach, swiss chard, kale and all kinds of lettuces
• Annual herbs – cilantro, parsley, chives
• Strawberries – buy bare roots to save money and make planting easier
• Root Veggies – beets, radishes and maybe shallow carrot varieties like Tonda di parigi
• Annual Flowers – marigolds, nasturtiums, pansies and violas