How To Build Your Own Succulent Wall Planter In Just 10 Simple Steps

When we sold our house, I had a tough realization… no more projects for a while. Now, I can deal with that for a week or two, but a month or two? No way.

So I began studying the rooms in our new home. The one that we wouldn’t move into for a couple of months.

And I realized there were several projects I could do with our new home in mind to help feed my creative energy while also doing something special to help prepare us for the move.

One project I had been wanting to try my hand in for quite some time was a DIY Succulent Wall Planter that I saw Brad and Holly from Our Faux Farmhouse build for their back porch.

Back when I first saw this project, I thought no way would I be able to recreate that!

But over the last few months, I’ve gotten more and more comfortable with power tools, so I thought why not give it a try?

So I jumped in headfirst into Holly & Brad’s tutorial and learned a thing or two along the way that I’ll share with you here!

HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN SUCCULENT WALL PLANTER IN JUST 10 SIMPLE STEPS

STEP 1: FIGURE OUT WHAT SIZE PLANTER YOU WANT & GET YOUR SUPPLIES

Of course the first step is to figure out what size planter you want to create. This is totally up to you!

I suggest figuring out where you want to put it and go from there. I chose to create a planter for a wall in our new sunroom, so I went with a 50″ long, 31″ wide planter.

Using your measurements, determine how much wood you need!

We went with…

• Tongue and groove wood planks. I recommend cedar for the color, but we went with a board patterned pine because that’s what Home Depot had in stock. We needed enough 8′ planks for 10 31″ long pieces, so we got 4 planks for the project, plus a couple extra just in case. We got about 3 pieces cut per plank.
• Scrap wood for the backing. We went with old cedar planks that were .75″ thick. If you’re creating the same size planter as we did, you will need 2 50″ pieces for each side and 2 31″ pieces for the top and bottom that you will trim down to fit your planter depending on how wide your scrap wood is!
• 1.25″ drywall screws to secure the backing, frame, and French cleat.
• 1″ x 2″ cedar boards for the frame. You’ll need to make sure you have enough for the total outside of the planter! When I make my list, I add an extra 5 or 6″ per piece to leave room for error.
• 1″ x 4″ board for the french cleat to hang the planter.
• 2 metal brackets to support the weight of the french cleat.
• Black metal planter hoops that are 6″ in diameter – I used 12
• 12 terra cotta pots with ledges that are 6″ in diameter.

Tools I used…

• Drill
• Miter saw
• Tape measure
• Level

I also created a mini planter out of the leftovers from this project! That one was 12″x30″. The only difference is I’m not using a French cleat to hang it since it’s nice and small.

I painted it white with a charcoal trim and used 4″ black metal planter hoops and pots instead of 6″! Same brand of each as above!

For a visual, head to my Instagram page and check out my Wall Planter highlight!

STEP 2: CUT YOUR TONGUE AND GROOVE BOARDS

Now things get simple! Using your miter saw, start cutting down your tongue and groove boards into the width you want. We cut 10 boards that were 31″ wide.

Flip them upside down and connect them on a flat surface.

Make sure they line up, then move on to step 3.

STEP 3: INSTALL YOUR BACKING

Take your scrap wood and frame up your wall planter on the back. You’ll want the sides of your scrap wood to be flush with the edges of your planter.

Secure the two long side pieces with drywall screws and your drill, making sure to add screws into each tongue and groove board.

Once your side pieces are installed, measure and cut your top and bottom pieces to install. Secure them into your planter with drywall screws.

STEP 4: INSTALL YOUR FRENCH CLEAT

Take the wood you got for your french cleat and cut it lengthwise at a 45-degree angle. One piece will be attached and anchored to your wall (the piece that’s full width on the bottom) while the other piece will be attached to the top board of your backing (the piece that is angled on the bottom).

STEP 5: ADD YOUR BRACKETS

Take your metal brackets and secure one side of each on either side of the french cleat (on the backing), then angle the other side of each out and secure it on left and right side backing. This will help to distribute the weight of the planter.

STEP 6: DECIDE IF YOU WANT TO PAINT OR STAIN YOUR WOOD

At this point, I flipped my planter over and decided to stain the wood and paint it! I used a sunbleached stain and Gatherings paint by Magnolia to tone down the orange in the wood and distress it a bit.

Once I let that dry, I moved into the next step.

STEP 7: ADD YOUR FRAME

Now, measure out and attach your frame, making sure the smooth side faces out. You’ll need to use your saw to angel the ends so they meet on all four corners.

Using more drywall screws, we secured the frame to the backing of the planter by drilling at an angel from the back.

STEP 8: ADD YOUR PLANTER HOOPS

Next, measure our and add your planter hoops to your wall planter. Keep in mind, the pots will hang lower than the rings! Then using more drywall screws (instead of the screws that came with the hoops), I secured them to the board.

But make sure your hoops are level, not the braces! Some of my hoop brackets were a little off, so I just made sure my hoops were level with the ground.

STEP 9: ADD YOUR POTS AND SUCCULENTS

Then, place your pots and succulents in the rings, hang up your planter, and you’ve got yourself a perfect succulent wall planter!

I distressed my pots with a little chalk paint for fun!

STEP 10: ADMIRE YOUR WORK

Once you’re done, step back and admire all your hard work! You did it!

I had so much fun with this project! It was rewarding and challenging at the same time. And I couldn’t be happier with the outcome!

What do you think? Will you try this one out? Let me know!