6 jobs a cheap wooden planter makes you do (the Sussex turns up done)

The first job a cheap planter hands you is building it. The reviews are full of it: "a bit fiddly to assemble," wrote one buyer; others describe an afternoon of cheap fixings and vague instructions before they have anything to plant in. You paid for a planter and got a kit.

So check what actually turns up. The Sussex is built in our Kent workshop and arrives fully assembled, base, sides, liner and all. There’s nothing to put together, no tools, no missing screws. You lift it out of the box, set it where you want it, and you’re ready to plant.

The second job is finishing the wood. As one buyer found, the planter "requires sealing before use," so they "had to buy a spray sealant before use." An extra trip, an extra tenner, and a job to do before you’ve planted a thing, on top of waiting for it to dry.

So check whether it arrives finished. The Sussex is already treated with Timbac, our own non-toxic, water-and-wax treatment, applied at the workshop. There’s no sealing, oiling or painting for you to do, and because Timbac is non-toxic it’s safe around edibles, pets and children from the moment it lands.

The third job is the liner, and it’s the one people resent most. One gardener’s fix says it all: "it doesn’t come with a liner, so I staple gunned a plastic parcel bag... and cut holes in the bottom." A bin bag and a staple gun is not what anyone had in mind.

So check whether it comes lined, and lined properly. The Sussex arrives with the right liner already fitted at the workshop, so water drains where it should and the timber stays protected, with nothing for you to cut, staple or replace.

The fourth job is drainage, and it sends everyone down the same rabbit hole: "do I need to put some holes in the bottom to allow for drainage… how many and what size?" Then comes the gravel myth, which only makes it worse, "adding rocks to the bottom of a planter raises the water table, leaving roots in soggy soil."

So check that drainage is designed in, not left to you. On the Sussex the slatted base and the built-in liner work together: water drains away through the base, so there’s nothing to drill and no gravel to tip in. You plant it, you water it, and the water knows where to go.

The fifth job only shows up later, when the base starts to rot because it’s been sitting in trapped water. The standard advice is to do it yourself: "don’t let my base sit flat on the patio or soil, place me on feet, bricks, or specialised planter stands." So now you’re sourcing bricks to keep your new planter alive.

So check whether it’s designed to stay off the wet. The Sussex sits on a slatted raised base, built in, so water and air pass underneath and the bottom never sits wet. Nothing to prop, nothing to buy, it stands straight down on the patio and stays dry.

The last job is the one nobody warns you about: waiting. A reviewer of a cheap import put it bluntly, "what they treat it with really stinks, so leave it outside when built to get rid of the smell." If you can smell it, it’s coming off the wood, and you’re told to leave your new planter standing empty until it stops.

So check what it’s treated with, and whether you can use it straight away. The Sussex is treated with Timbac, non-toxic and water-and-wax based, not tanalised. There’s no smell to air off and nothing to wait for, you plant your herbs, salads and flowers the day it arrives.