Boat Planter

1 I started by cleaning and painting the boat, outlined the lawn around where the boat would be placed and enlarged the area for the appearance of in the water. Then came the work of digging out the sod, digging a lower recess for the boat to set down into on a slight angle, and putting down lawn fabric. I used a metal edging that had some flex for the curves to pound in at the lawn's edge. Once the boat was positioned, I drilled some drainage holes in the bottom of the boat, added gravel to the inside and then potting soil up to the bench seats. For the area around the boat, I found some bluish- gray rocks to add to the appearance of water.

Once friends and neighbors saw what I was doing out there, they started donating items to me. One gave me a pair of oars, which was perfect! Another, a set of wood pilings for the boat to be moored to. This was really coming along!

2 I use all annual plants and I like to change up the look a little each year. Sometimes lots of flowers and color, other times tall waving plants, or cascading over the sides. I found several great wetland accent pieces on Amazon - the Gray Heron, Mallard Ducks and ducklings, and eventually Lilly pads and a frog that just brings the whole look together.

Who would have thought this boat would be as much fun off-planting season as it was with plants? The first Holiday I decorated for was Halloween. I LOVE Halloween...it's my favorite holiday. We already had a graveyard and lots of other decorations, but now I could feature a skeleton pirate boat too! It came out spooktacular! From there I was hooked, and for most of the holidays I would find a way to decorate and fill the boat. Spring, Easter, Summer, Fourth of July, Fall, Halloween, and Christmas. See slideshow below.

3 Who would have thought that something I did to enhance my lawn and exercise my need to be creative would put a smile on so many people's faces? Friends and neighbors would come out while I was working on it, and it would become a chat session. They'd share how much they love the boat and watch for all the changes each year. Not just neighbors stopping by, but also people walking with their dogs or strolling with kids, stopping to say they love the boat and look forward to seeing it each time they go by. They've taken pictures of their kids and families in front of the boat, left cards, and painted rocks! They slow down as they go by in cars just to shout, "We love your boat!" I can't tell you how it fills me up that something I created primarily for me to enjoy can also bring joy to so many others or put a little smile in someone's day. Pretty amazing.