Strawberries are one of the UK's favourite fruits and are closely associated with the tennis season. Therefore, rather than purchasing them from the supermarket, why not grow your own strawberries in your back garden by simply using a PVC pipe?
Here we show you how to do just that.
- Use a saw to cut a piece of 4-8 inch wide PVC pipe to your required planter height.
- Using a hole saw, cut multiple 1.5 inch wide holes vertically along three sides of the PVC pipe, leaving between 6 and 8 inches between each hole.
- Use a power drill and a 1/8-inch drill bit to cut five evenly spaced holes at the bottom of a PVC end cap to fit the size of the PVC pipe.
- Place a piece of trimmed wire mesh inside the end cap and secure it to the pipe with PVC cement.
- Attach the PVC planter to your desired location, such as a fence or free-standing post using zip ties. Ensure that the three sides of the planter with holes in it face outwards.
- Cut a piece of 1 inch wide PVC pipe roughly 4 inches longer than your planter.
- Drill multiple 1/8 to 1/4 inch holes through the PVC pipe. These should be 4 inches from one end and extend down and the holes should be 6 inches apart at the top, 3 inches apart in the middle and 1 inch apart at the bottom.
- Place the PVC pipe inside the planter with the 1 inch spacing part at the bottom.
- While holding the pipe centrally inside the planter, fill the space around it with potting soil.
- Strawberry transplants or runners can then be planted in the planting holes you made in the side of the PVC planter.
- Next, fill the planter with water. It should reach the top of the planter and the soil should feel moist.
- Finally, fill the pipe with water and wait approximately an hour for it to be absorbed. This process should be repeated until the pipe stays filled with water after an hour.
