GALVANIZED WATER TANK / TROUGH VEGETABLE GARDENS



Water Troughs all in a row

In a recent blog post, I mentioned stumbling across the idea of using galvanized water troughs as raised bed gardens and I was intrigued.  So I decided to do some research, and here's the info I found along with some pictures.  All photos were randomly sourced from the internet and are not mine.  If you know where credit belongs, please let me know and I'll gladly link to them.

The general consensus is that it can be done, it's relatively easy and as compared to buying and sealing wood, can, at times, be comparable in price.  The only down side is that you are limited in the size you can have, whereas with wood, you can make any size or shape you wish.


Photo by Thomas J. Story, courtesy of Sunset Magazine Article

The main difference of course is that a lot 

of holes need to be punched/drilled into the bottom, as drainage appears to be the biggest hurdle. Most people (Bee Girl included!) put plastic bottles or rocks in the bottom to create some space between the bottom holes and the soil.  A good idea also is to put mesh in the bottom to keep soil from washing out of the holes over time.

Long water trough use as vegetable garden

One site I visited said someone was concerned about the metal and the use of it around food plants, but after careful research they found the fears unfounded. 

There is just so much I find appealing about this style of planting.  Not the least of which is the look of the garden; it's beautiful to see these containers in an outdoor setting.  As you can see, people are growing all sorts of stuff in them.  From flowers to salad greens to berries to full blown veggie gardens. 

I found that most commonly, people use the oval/long troughs, but I have to say I LOVE the look of these round ones in the next two pictures.  It would be awesome to have a garden with about 8 of these all in a neat arrangement in a fenced in area.  Or maybe a random placing of them around the property.

More round tanks being used as gardens

The bottom line, here are pluses:  Height, they are usually 2 feet high and that's a good height so you do not have to stoop or bend over as much, and building two foot high sides in a wooded raised bed is a little more difficult and of course uses more wood; they are contained and will hold moisture better; the metal will keep the soil warm and allow for earlier planting; and they are movable (empty of course) around the yard.  Minuses are: cost, they are more pricey new, though you might find some a farmer is willing to get rid of, but again, not sure if the cost of wood, screws, brackets and of course your time would add up to the same; then there is the holding moisture part, you really need to make sure they are well draining and have plenty of holes so that the soil doesn't get too waterlogged;  you are limited in shapes by what is available and therefore square foot gardening might not work as well; and some people worry that the metal sides, when hot, could burn leaves growing along the edge.

UPDATE:  I was reminded in the comments, that cutting or welding galvanized metal is not safe without the proper equipment.  Drilling holes will be OK, but just don't attempt to cut or weld without reading safety procedures for that.

Overall, I think I would like to try this, at least maybe with one or two and see what happens.  My first step is finding some troughs/tanks.  Living in SE Texas, there are plenty of rural ranch areas with farms/cattle/horses/etc and I should be able to find some at Feed Stores and other such places.  Maybe they can even deliver, since I'm sure I can't get one of these in the back of either of our vehicles!  I'm thinking maybe putting one near the house to keep some herbs handy for 2nd Man's cooking, and try it that way first.

Whatever we do, I'll keep you posted.