Wheelbarrow Succulent Planter

May is always a busy month for us. End of the school year activities keeps us hopping from one event to the next. As a general rule, we try not to overload our schedule and usually do a decent job of limiting our time spent on extracurriculars. But with spring performances and awards ceremonies over three different school schedules, its been a jam-packed May! And we're barely halfway thru! The most spectacular events are yet to come.  My oldest will graduate 5th grade in a couple of weeks while my youngest graduates Pre-K. Be still my heart!

We've had a couple weekends of amazing weather which has allowed us to get outside and poke around in the garden. Did anyone see the Better Home & Gardens Succulent addition? It was an impulse buy in the grocery checkout lane. It was filled with cute ideas and great info on which succulents would do best in our area. We live in a 5/6 planting zone.




This wheelbarrow came with the house. It was broken with all its pieces dumped in the corner of the back patio. The seller was getting ready to deploy in a few months so we didn't complain about the dumpsite or the other items hastily dumped on the curb. He had bigger things to take care of, like settling his family into their new home before he left. Anyways, its kind of a dream to purchase a house that has a curb-alert in front! lol




One handle is missing completely. The second handle is rusted on. No amount of WD-40 and brute force would loosen that bolt. I really wanted to save the wooden handle so I attempted to cut through the bolt with the metal cutting blade on my oscillating saw. No go. The blade was too worn down. Reluctantly I sawed through some of the wood to slip out the bolt. It's intact enough to use for something else down the road.

The metal stand, though, is stuck on. This came in handy later when I was trying to balance out the wheelbarrow in the garden.



Ideally, I wanted to sink the wheelbarrow into the garden so that later the succulents will spill over the edge and take root in the garden. Succulents need a well-draining planter, so I made sure to keep open space under the wheelbarrow drainage holes. That's where the stubborn metal stand came in handy. It allowed me to give the wheelbarrow support while allowing for empty spaces underneath.

The inside was given a generous layer of rocks and pinecones because that's what was on hand. I do think this will provide enough drainage.

Dirt covered the top and the succulents were nestled around the wheelbarrow.

There are three spreading succulents spread out around the lowest portion of the planter. These are the ones I hope will grow over the edge and begin to spread out in the garden. If all goes well, it should create a beautiful "river" of ground cover. 

Close-ups of the three hopeful spreaders.

While at Dollar Tree, my daughter and I found these cute little planter buddies. We bought three packages for a total of nine animals. The kids have had fun placing them around the planter, then moving them around again.  

We did have some snow midweek. We threw a blanket over the top to offer protection from the frost. Seems to have worked. Its another beautiful weekend (our spring weather is moody like that) and the succulents are no worse for wear. 

The void is waiting for some ranunculus bulbs to pop out, assuming the squirrels haven't dug them up yet. There are also some cosmos seeds sleeping underneath and a few marigold seeds I have yet to plant. 

My family surprised me with these Mother's Day tulips. It'll be fun adding these to the garden, too! 

This repurposed wheelbarrow is the newest addition to my eclectic garden theme. It'll be a fun summer of garage sales and thrift stores hunting for more funky items!

I hope you're enjoying your spring, wherever you are!