Strawberry Pyramids
Posted by Kitty Sharkey , Thursday, April 26, 2012 1:59 PM
Tools:
- Measuring tape
- Square
- Marker
- Saw (preferably a circular saw, but a hand saw would work just fine)
- Drill
- Screw driver bit for drill
- 1/4" drill bit
Materials:
- Four 5-1/2" x 6' fence pickets, preferably redwood
- Small box of #8 deck screws (or whatever short screws you may have on hand)
- Soil - preferably amended with some good organic compost or manure
- 22 Strawberry plants - If you can find bare root plants, they are the least expensive.
Cutting Guide:
- Board #1 = 2 pieces 18" long and 2 pieces 15" long
- Board #2 = same as board #1
- Board #3 = 4 pieces at 9" long and 2 pieces at 18" long
- Board #4 = 2 pieces at 18" long + 36" left over for another use or a second pyramid
- Split one of the 18" long pieces lengthwise into 2 pieces approximately 2-1/4" wide. Don't worry about getting this exact as it won't be seen so it doesn't have to be perfect.
- You should end up with the following:
- 7 pieces 18" long x full width of board
- 2 pieces 18" long by 1/2 width of board
- 4 pieces 15" long
- 4 pieces 9" long
I'm assuming some basic skills here, like how to screw two boards together and use a square to make sure the box isn't lopsided. If you need help with this, I'm sure you can find a handy friend to lend hand (or even construct the entire thing for you).
1) Build the bottom box. This requires four 18" pieces for the sides, and three 18" pieces for the bottom.
2) Add the two 18" long strips to the bottom to help with drainage. Drill several 1/4" drainage holes on each bottom board. Although it's not shown in the picture, now is a good time to put a strip of Corry's Slug and Snail Copper Tape Barrier all the way around the bottom of the box
3) Assemble the first riser using four 15" pieces. Offset each board so that the part hanging out is 3" long.
4) Assemble the second riser using four 9" pieces. Again, offset each board so that the part hanging out is 3" long.
5) This picture shows the placement of the first riser on the bottom box.
6) This picture shows the placement of the second riser.
7) And this is what it should look like once it's built.
8) Place the bottom box in the location that you want the pyramid to be. Fill the bottom box full of soil. Tamp it down a little bit, but don't compact it.
9) Place the first riser on top of the bottom box as shown and fill it with soil.
10) Place the second riser on top of the first one as shown and fill it with soil.
11) Plant 3 strawberries on each side of the bottom box, 2 strawberries on each side of the middle tier, and 2 strawberries in the top. Alternately, as long as you add a support cage or some type of trellising you can plant one determinate tomato plant in the top as I did.
12) Water regularly at all levels when the soil starts to dry out. The plants will fill in nicely and most of the berries will hang over the edges rather than lay in the dirt.
TA DA!!!! That's it! A simple, elegant, space saving solution for growing strawberries.
I love this idea - thanks so much for sharing it!