Corten steel trough planters

These sizes show how length, width and steel thickness affect the price. Volumes are outer volumes (length × width × height): the amount of soil a trough actually holds is somewhat less.

Measure the run you want to plant first, then split it into troughs. A 6 m (about 20 ft) deck edge takes three 2000 mm Déméter troughs set end to end, or four 1200 mm troughs with a 1.2 m (about 4 ft) opening left in the center for a walkway or steps.

Width adds soil volume without lengthening the run. At 2000 mm (79 in) long and 400 mm (16 in) high, going from 400 to 500 mm wide (16 to 20 in) takes the outer volume from about 320 to 400 L (85 to 106 US gal): useful for shrubs, but more than low ornamental grasses need. Height sets the effect from a deck chair: 400 mm (16 in) keeps the line low, 800 mm (31 in) begins to screen.

• Déméter 2 mm: 21 sizes, 900 to 2000 mm long (35 to 79 in), 300 to 600 mm wide (12 to 24 in) and 400 to 1000 mm high (16 to 39 in).
• Déméter 1.5 mm: just 6 sizes, either 400 mm (16 in) wide and 400 mm (16 in) high, or 300 mm (12 in) wide and 800 mm (31 in) high. In the same size it costs more than the 2 mm version ($3,410 versus $3,370 at 1200 × 400 × 400 mm): you choose it for its thinner profile.
• Narrow sizes, 300 mm (12 in) wide and 800 mm (31 in) high, in 900, 1200 and 1500 mm lengths: the row gains height without taking up deck space, set against a house wall, a porch railing or a fence. Our tall Corten steel planters go further in that direction.
• Thalie: our only rectangular planter on legs, 500 mm (20 in) wide and 600 mm (24 in) high, which lifts the row off the deck or patio.

In a larger yard, a long run of 2000 mm troughs can divide the space without building anything: an outdoor dining area on one side, the lawn on the other. For a privacy screen, plant upright evergreens (tall grasses, clumping bamboo, clipped shrubs) close together in troughs set in a row. The continuous steel line hides the base of the plants and gives the screen a clean edge. Along a walkway or driveway, allow for foliage leaning into the path.

Around a pool, choose plants that shed few leaves and leave room between the trough and the pool coping for upkeep. Snap a chalk line and set out the row while the troughs are empty: a 2000 × 400 × 400 mm Déméter already weighs 47.5 kg (105 lb) before any soil, and once it is planted it is not going anywhere.

On a raised wood deck or a rooftop, the empty weights in our table are only part of the load: the soil and water in a trough of this size weigh much more than the steel, so check what the structure is built to carry before choosing the size. Lower, narrower troughs are often the better fit there.

Each trough leaves our workshop with the Cortenys signature patina already applied. In a long row, rain and irrigation water run down the full length of the sides, and that is where oxide can mark light-colored concrete, pavers, a wood deck or pool coping.

A protective varnish is available as an option on Déméter and Thalie ($3,430 instead of $3,370 for a 1000 × 500 × 400 mm Déméter). The varnish greatly reduces runoff, but even varnished, Corten steel can still stain the floor: protect the surface with spacers or shims, a gravel strip under the row, or dark pavers. On Thalie, the gap the legs leave under the base keeps water from sitting against the deck. Our Corten steel care guide covers these precautions step by step.

If the row is planted straight into the ground (a garden bed, a hedge in the yard), the planter does not need a bottom: Gaïa has the rectangular shape of Déméter without a base, in our bottomless Corten steel planters. For a single specimen plant rather than a row, a square Corten steel planter works better; for a small tree, see our large Corten steel planters. The complete Corten steel planter collection puts every shape side by side.