DIY Network

Pot-Rack Hanging Garden Give Mother Nature a new place to shine. From "B. Original" episode DBOR-601

Grow a great look with Michele Beschen.

Hanging plants add life to any room – so why not B. Original with your plants and create a whole hanging garden?

Michele Beschen shows how to transform a wooden pot rack into a hanging garden that will be a focal point for any room. Add a few pieces of wood and a small fluorescent light, and you're ready to grow, even without a window nearby.

Scroll down for her easy how-to, and B. Original with a pot-rack hanging garden.

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Hang 'em high with this lighted indoor garden.

Pot-Rack Hanging Garden

Materials:

wooden pot rack
fluorescent light fixture
1x8 pine
- (1) 20" piece
– (2) 16" pieces
drill with wood bit
pocket hole jig
pocket hole screws
1-5/8" drywall screws
band saw, jigsaw or hand saw
1/8"machine screws, washers and nuts
grow-light bulbs
decorative chain
(4) 1" eyebolts
decorative chain
ceiling hooks
stud finder
pencil

	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E

• Look for wooden pot racks at thrift stores, second-hand stores and yard sales. Michele Beschen's pot rack measured 21-1/2" square with dowels on the bottom for hanging pots. You also can build a pot rack from scratch.

• Lay one of the 16" pieces of lumber on a steady work surface. Measure and draw a line across the board 3/4" from one end. Also measure and draw lines longways on the board, 1-1/4" from each edge. When this is done, the lines should make a square arch.

• Repeat the process for the other 16" board.

• These two arches will be cut out to support the light above the pot rack. However, it's important to drill the holes in the arch before cutting them out; if the arches are cut out first, the wood will be more likely to break and split when drilled.

• Use a pocket hole jig to drill a pocket hole in the center of each leg of the arch (figure A). The jig makes it possible to drill a hole that comes in from the side of the board and comes out the end.

• Drill three straight pilot holes along the top of each arch, about 1/2" from the edge (figure B).

• Cut out the arches. Michele Beschen used a band saw (figure C); a jigsaw or hand saw also will work.

• The 20" board will be the top of the light's frame. Place the 20" board flat on the work surface, flip one of the arches upside-down and line it up with the edge of the 20" piece. The pocket holes should be toward the inside of the board.

• Use 1-5/8" drywall screws to attach the arch to the end of the 20" board. Attach the other arch to the other end of the board, making sure the pocket holes are toward the inside.

• Position the light fixture on the underside of the frame and mark the locations for the screws. Remove the light fixture and use a 1/8" wood bit to drill pilot holes at those locations (figure D).
  
  
• Turn the arch right-side up, center it on the pot rack and attach it with 1-1/4" pocket screws driven through the pocket holes (figure E).

• Paint, stain or decorate the piece as desired.

• After any paint or sealers have dried, attach the light fixture to the frame using 1/8" machine screws, washers and nuts. Install grow-light bulbs in the light fixture.

• To hang, install a 1" eyebolt at each corner of the rack. Attach a length of chain to each eyebolt and secure it to the ceiling with ceiling hooks.

• Deck your rack out with trays, pot up your seeds and turn on the light! Whether you fill it with herbs or use it to start seedlings, this indoor garden will grow in any weather.