DIY Network

Lightweight Concrete Planters Concrete planters don't have to break your back. From "B. Original" episode DBOR-135

These lightweight planters are light on your wallet!

Concrete containers could be the perfect way to display outdoor plants—if they weren't expensive and heavy. Luckily, Michele Beschen has a way to reduce the pain in your wallet and your back with lightweight concrete planters you cast yourself.

The B. Original host shows how to sculpt your own planters from plastic packing foam, then coat them with a thick layer of concrete for beautiful, indestructible and portable planters you'll love. Scroll down for the how-to.

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Lightweight Concrete Planters

Materials:

	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C

plastic packing foam
chicken wire
work gloves
tin snips
concrete mix
plastic container for mixing concrete
water
plastic or rubber gloves

• We all seem to accumulate plastic packing foam that we don't toss out because it might come in handy someday. Well, someday is here—dig out the foam and choose a few pieces that could make suitable containers for plants. You can even use cheap foam coolers that have seen better days (figure A).

• Don't fret if you don't have the perfect piece of foam: Cut pieces apart with a serrated knife, and glue portions together to get the desired shape. Don't forget to carve drainage holes in the bottom of the container.

• Once the foam is the right shape, cover it tightly with chicken wire. Concrete will slide right off plain foam, but will adhere to the wire. Use small pieces of wire to tack down the chicken wire anywhere it sticks up away from the foam (figure B).

• Mix up some standard concrete mix. Michele Beschen prefers to use concrete that contains mostly sand instead of rock for smoother application. Mix the concrete until it's the consistency of cookie dough. You can add some concrete colorant to the mix if you want colored concrete without painting.

• Wearing plastic or rubber gloves, cover the container completely with concrete (figure C).

• Let the container dry, then seal, paint and plant it up!