Help designing a converted sand table.

I am a beginner gardener with a brown thumb seeking help designing the layout of my "flower bed"..

I have a raised plastic sand table (about 21/2 ft L, 2 1/2 ft W, 1 1/2 ft H) that I want to convert into a planter. I have deer, rabbits and squirrels in my garden and I thought this might deter at least the bunnies.

I plan to have this against the front wall of my house.

The plants I have are:
1 plant Lady Lavender, 8-10”

4 plants Aster Pot and Patio mix– Frilly flowers in a mix of colors; 8”

4 plants Cosmos Rose Bonbon:. 24-36”

20 plants Callendula

4 plants Helen’s flower (helenium) – Wider than it is tall. 15”.

4plants Morning glory vine

I also have a couple of Amaranth plants , Basil, sandia hot peppers and lettuce. Don't know if it would help to have any of them also in the mix


Here is a picture of the table I intend to use. Please note that I will only use one half of it - the red side only http://www.littletikes.com/toys/toys-detail.aspx?Product_ID=3559&GCID=C16744x008>kw=451T


Thank You!

Are you planning to leave the legs on it. I don't know if it would be strong enough with wet soil in it! You would also need drainage holes in the bottom. How deep is the top of the table?

I will leave the legs on. It is a sand table designed for 50 lb of sand. So I am hoping it will be able to carry the soil. The dimensions are 21" x 23" x 4 1/2" interior.

You 'might' get two or three plants to live in it! It is 'very' shallow for plants. If it were me I wouldn't even try it. Sorry.

Thanks for the feedback. I guess I will find some other planter then.

Good Luck, Smokey

4.5 inches deep is shallow but I beieve some pots for plants are less than that. I would ask a nursery or two and see if they have some shallow root possibilities. Also consider maybe an herb garden. Check the steppables web site also as the low growers they sell are bound to have shallow roots. Just a thought.

You could try sitting a light weight pot with flowers in it in the center, surround it with potting soil in the sand table, then plant low-growing ground cover around it. The ground cover will creep over the sides of the sand table and it could look very pretty.

What about making a big gold fish bowl. Using water plants and a small fish tank pump and filter to keep the water clean. You would have to add a reinforcement under the table to help with weight but could be neat.

Unfortunately buying more plants is not an option for me. I went crazy at the plant sale and bought a ton of plants already.

I like the idea of putting a pot in the middle with some vines hanging around. Maybe I can put some of my herbs and flowers in the pot for variety.
For the vine, can I use the Morning glory?

My daughter used a plastic kid's swimming pool that wasn't very deep. It was one of those that look like a turtle, if you've ever seen those. Anyway she planted it with wildflower seeds, and it grew quite well. It looked really cute. I think your sand table would be OK to plant flowers in.