DIY Strawberry Gutter (Planter)

By Dannii · Published 12th July 2016 · Updated 20th September 2021 · 121 Comments · This post may contain affiliate links and generates income via ads · This site uses cookies · Post contains 1207 words. · About 7 minutes to read this article.

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If you want to grow some strawberries this year, but you don't have a lot of space in your garden, then give this DIY Strawberry Gutter a try - it's cheap to make too.

Strawberry Planter

Nothing tastes more like summer than fresh, juicy strawberries, and with Wimbledon having just finished (well done Andy); this wonderful little fruit is always popular.

With over 28,000 kilos of strawberries eaten during Wimbledon fortnight alone, it’s no wonder people are always after them. Like most people that live in the city, we don't have a lot of garden space, so we choose to grow upwards.

Why should you make it?

Homegrown fruit
Simple to make, with only a few steps
Really inexpensive to make
Space saving

How To Build Strawberry Gutter - step by step:

One: Firstly, measure your space and using a hacksaw cut the gutter to the lengths you require (mine are 1 metre/39 inches long each).

Two: Using a drill, make drainage holes in the base, spaced about 15cm/6 inches apart. Put the stop ends on and the gutter is ready.

At this point, the brackets can be fixed to a vertical surface if you have a suitable one available and the gutter clipped into them.

I constructed a simple frame from treated timber (it’s important the timber is treated as it will be resistant to the weather). This also makes the whole gutter system portable, should it need to be relocated.

Three: For the frame, I used two lengths of 140x22mm/6x1” timber for the uprights and two lengths of 50x38mm/2x1.5” timber for the cross supports. I cut the uprights to 1500mm/59 inches each and the cross supports at 1100mm/43 inches each. For the uprights, measure where you want the brackets to be and screw them at equal distances apart. Do this for both uprights.

Four: Position the cross supports at the back of the uprights and screw into place to make the frame.

Five: Clip in the cutter lengths and the frame will be ready to be stood up. For extra support, I fixed the frame at the bottom of the uprights to a raised bed that we already had.

Six: The gutter can now finally be filled with compost (leave a small space below the rim for watering) and you can plant your strawberries. This type of growing gutter is also good for microgreens, pea shoots and herbs.

How To Grow Strawberries In A Small Space

Growing your own strawberries is easy - there are varieties that can be grown in sunny spots as well as shady areas. Make sure you research the type of strawberry you want to grow before planting, as a sun loving variety with not do well in a shady place.

Strawberry plants that are grown successfully can harvest lots of fruit, but the plants can also take up quite a bit of space. If you are limited for growing space, what can you do when you can’t grow plants out? You grow upwards!

What Guttering To Use

Plastic guttering can be bought from most builders’ merchants or large DIY stores for a fairly reasonable price. Don't forget that you will also need brackets and stop ends.

Choose a gutter that has a fairly deep profile, to maximise the amount of soil and space for the roots to grow.

Once you have selected the type of gutter you want (there are many designs and colours to choose from) it’s time to get building.

How Big To Build It

It completely depends on the amount of space you have and how much space you want to take up. But always plan your strawberry gutter out on paper before you start building.

After we planted our strawberries, we decided to remove the bottom gutter as we were also growing tomatoes in the raised bed below and they are quite tall. The tomatoes grew really fast and started to take over a little bit, consider that if you are growing something under the strawberries.

Extra tips

Use a guttering with a deep profile.
Make sure the timber you use is treated to protect against weather.
Follow the builders' rule: Measure twice, cut once.
Don't forget stop-ends for your guttering or the soil/compost will fall out.
You can stain or varnish the timber, but make sure it is completely dry before planting anything.

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If you’ve tried this project then let us know how you got on in the comments below. We love hearing from you!

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A strawberry hanging from a plant that is growing in a gutter

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