Are you looking to add that extra special touch to your garden but find yourself on a tight budget? Look no further than the humble wooden pallet as we show you 3 fantastic ways to upcycle it into garden furniture, planter boxes and more.
Is your pallet safe for reuse?
Typically available from as little as $5 second-hand (although if you look hard enough, you’ll probably find someone giving them away for FREE), pallets are widely available, and with a little bit of work they can soon be turned into something both chic and functional. Before you rush out to get your first pallets though you should be aware that not all pallets are suitable for garden projects. This is because under the IPPC (International Plant Protection Convention) pallets are treated before being used internationally – and one of these treatments renders the pallet unsuitable for garden projects.
Treated pallets will either have the code HT which means heat treated or the code MB which means they have been chemically fumigated with Methyl Bromide. Heat treated pallets are fine to use but chemically treated ones are not – this method has now been banned but some old pallets that have been treated with chemicals are still around. You may also see the code DB which means the wood was debarked – it does not matter whether your pallet carries this stamp or not. Additionally you will often find a stamp has a two-letter abbreviation indicating which country it originated from; you might find yourself with an international pallet garden featuring units from Japan, Canada or the U.S!
Inspirational ideas for upcycling pallets
Pallets can be used in tens or even hundreds of different ways in your garden, they are so simple that they can be turned into almost anything. To help you get started we’ve provided you with three great ideas that you can use in your own garden:
Vertical Pallet Garden – Is your space at a premium? Turn a spare wooden pallet into a vertical garden that can fit almost anywhere! To get the most our of your vertical garden choose plants that will suit the conditions in your chosen location; in some areas in your garden a vertical pallet will get very little sunlight while in others it will get a lot.
Pallet Planter Box – With a few DIY skills your pallets can be turned into planter boxes, suitable for plants that need a bit more soil than the vertical pallet garden offers. With a few pallets and a bit of hard work these can be made to almost any size.
Pallet Garden Furniture – Once you’ve created your beautiful pallet garden you’re going to want to sit back and admire it, and why not do so from garden furniture made from pallets themselves? You can make chairs, tables and even recliners from pallets and your furniture will be guaranteed to be absolutely unique to your garden.
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