If you want to garden in style, without all the bending over, then an elevated planter is the perfect purchase. These planters can do right on your patio and can easily be kept away from rabbits, deer, and pets.

The only problem with elevated planters? They can be quite expensive, with nicer ones selling for close to $500. These CedarCraft ones sell for under $200 and can be purchase from CostCo for $140. But are they worth the money?

For this review we purchased three 21″x47″x32″ cedar elevated planters from CedarCraft. They sell for about $180 each at the time of the sale, but that’s number that will fluctuate based on your area, the color you want, and the season.

We’ve seen the price as low at $140 but that deal was in-person only at Costco stores.

CedarCraft Elevated Planter Video Review

In our video you can see the planter in action, from an empty shell to completely built and filled with dirt.

What We Love About the CedarCraft Elevated Planter

There is a lot to like about this planter, particularly because it costs roughly half what more expensive planters from placed like Gardeners.com can cost. Some of our favorite features include:

• 6-gallon water tray makes this planter self-watering
• 32-inch height is a pleasure to work in (no back pain at all and no time on your knees)
• Tough aluminum legs are sturdy and will never rust
• Casters are included but don’t need to be used
• Untreated cedar side panels look great and age nicely

What We Don’t Love

There are a lot of great things about these planters, but they aren’t perfect. Here are some shortcomings…

• The water filling tube is very small and barely flared at the end, so you end up spilling a lot water while filling it and disturbing nearby plants
• The cedar planks are mostly very nice, but some were a bit chewed up with clear imperfections. To be fair, this was normally only on one side so it could be hidden
• As shown in the video review, the screw holes are placed very oddly, almost like different sized cedar used to be used
• On two of the boxed we bought the cedar planks were the perfect thickness for the aluminum legs, but on the third the planks were at about a 1/8″ inch too thin! It’s not clear if the company moved to a lower grade wood or made a mistake, but it was disappointing
• These boxes are a bit small so plantings can be cramped
• The boxes are unlined so they won’t last as long as if they were lined with plastic or something similar

Using The CedarCraft Elevated Planters

Once the season started I really enjoyed the CedarCraft planters and have found excellent results. Elevated planters are much easier to use than raised beds, because you can do all your gardening while standing, not on your knees or hunched over.

Personally, I wanted these to last as long as possible so I lined them with sheets of plastic and then garden fabric in order to keep the water and dirt off of the cedar. This should get me a few more years our of the cedar before it rots, plus it means no dirty water leaks through the cracks between the boards and makes the exterior of the planters look dirt. The lining cost almost nothing and took about 15 minutes per planter.

In these planters I grew fava beans, dill, snap peas, lettuce mixes, sorrel, and even some artichokes. I have found excellent results and no problems with pests, aside from a few aphids. I used a fancy, organic elevated planter planting soil from Coast of Maine, which I’ve been extremely impressed with. It’s a bit expensive compared to Miracle Pro and other organic potting soils, but it’s a step above all the other brands I’ve tried.

I’d recommend buying one planter, and giving it a shot and then buying more (like I did). I’ve been super happy with elevated planters and pretty impressed with CedarCraft in general. I bought mine from CostCo, but if you don’t have one in your area, these are available on Amazon and other places as well.