I’ve always really liked the proportions of Satsuma crates, and the labels are often charming, too. During a recent closet cleaning, I ran across one I’d tucked away and realized it would make a really cute mini-container garden.

I lined the box with a recycled plastic bag and poked some holes in it over the holes in the bottom of the box - you need those for drainage. Then I folded the edges of the bag over so they looked tidy, and filled the box with potting soil and compost. I planted radish and lettuce seeds, put it outside, and watered it.

We’ve had ridiculously hot and dry weather here in Seattle, so I’ve watered the box most days. The picture at the top is about 2 weeks after planting - the radishes were getting big already, and the lettuce was doing really well. I added a row of green onions on the left side as an afterthought - they hadn’t come up yet when I took that picture.

I think it’s really cute - I gave it to my friend Michelle for her birthday. The only thing I’d do differently is plant the radishes a bit later than the lettuce, since they grow much more quickly and will be ready to eat before the lettuce is. The lettuce is Emerald Oak from Seeds of Change, and I think it’s the best lettuce I’ve ever grown - we’ve been eating the outer leaves of a few plants and the plants come back like crazy, the flavor is great, never bitter.