I got off my backside

and fixed up the planters on my back deck.

I've needed to do something with the large built in planters in the corners of my back deck for years. They didn't have anything planted in them when I bought the house and they've come to be filled with whatever the birds planted. One had some sort of bush...that wasn't suppose to be there and the other was full of mint that spread over from some pots I'd planted. Random vines grew up over the trellises I'd put in a few years ago.

The before pictures...

the left side

the right side

awful...hideous

A couple of week's ago Donna at Funky Junk Interiors urged her readers to get some pesky projects that they'd been putting off, done around the house. Well, I'd been putting this one off for years because I just didn't know what I wanted to do in those planters.

Finally, after deciding to take on this challenge

FunkyJunk's "Gitter Done!"

It came to me....I'd pull out all existing plants (weeds)...and line the planters with weed resistant fabric. The planters were only about half way full of dirt....so I covered the existing dirt with the landscaping fabric and stapled it to the inside of the planters. 

I fully intended on using the trellises again....but when I pulled them out I discovered the bottoms were all rusted and they broke...so I'll have to use something else. 

After filling both planters with potting soil. I planted sweet potato vines and coleus. I also sprinkled in morning glory seeds...so soon I'll have morning glories that will want to grow up a trellis. This coming weekend, I'm going to figure out what I want to do for new trellises.

But here is what it looks like so far...

left planter

right planter

Next on the "Gitter Done" list is spray painting the lights on the posts on the deck.

I was going to do for this post but it was a very busy last week and we've had intense rain today...so it didn't happen.

Soon...I'll show the complete deck...but because of the huge hail storm a month ago... I will be getting a new roof soon so I'm hesitant to do much more outside for fear that anything I do will get ruined by all the roofing materials that will soon be all over my yard. I have three layers of shingles that have to come off before I get the new roof. 

Good news is....I get to pick whatever color I want for the new roof and my horrible carport will by yanked out....something I've wanted gone forever. Now, I'm glad I had put it off because the roofers are going to do it for me. I'll feel like I have a whole new area of the back yard...because right now it feels like a scary cave under that carport.

Thanks Donna....for getting me moving...I probably wouldn't have done this project without your push to do something I'd been putting off. 

See more "Gitter Done" projects at

Gitter Done

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