Trough Planters and Rectangular Planter Boxes in Perth

Screening a boundary with one unbroken run of soil

Round pots leave gaps between canopies. A line of troughs does not. With an unbroken trench of soil, an upright hedge, a clumping slender weavers bamboo or a row of sansevieria grows together into one dense screen instead of a series of separate plants. That is why most of the screening work we quote on — along boundary fences, beside alfresco dining, down the side of a townhouse — ends up in rectangular boxes.

For courtyards, townhouse perimeters and strata properties around Perth, a run of planter boxes gives you a living screen without the footings, approvals or council permits a brick or masonry wall would need. You can see how they work in real Perth settings, balconies and commercial sites included, in our documented Perth projects.

Slim profiles for balconies, corridors and walkways

On a balcony, veranda or commercial alfresco area you want as much soil as you can get without losing walking room or space for a table. Rectangular troughs sit flush against a wall, a glass balustrade or a perimeter railing, so the floor stays usable:

• Narrow balcony troughs (80 cm to 100 cm): Widths as slim as 230 to 300 mm — the 1000Lx400Hx230W and the 80x30x40, for example — sit comfortably on a compact apartment balcony without narrowing the walkway.
• Mid-length courtyard dividers (150 cm): The Divider Trough Long (1500x370x600 mm), the 1500Lx500Hx500W trough and the Capri Trough Planter (74x36x60 and 49x18x48 cm in Light Stone) hold enough potting mix for mid-height hedging between a dining area and a lounging area.
• Long screening troughs (200 cm): Troughs at 2000x500x500 mm, including the Oblong Trough 200x50x50 and the TOV200, take around 500 litres of potting mix — enough root depth to carry a mature 2- to 3-metre privacy hedge along a property boundary or a commercial streetfront.

Internal bracing, and why a long trough needs it

A 200 cm trough holding 500 litres of wet potting mix weighs roughly 600 to 750 kg. The outward push of that saturated soil, along with root growth, will make an unreinforced lightweight box bow outward along its long sides. Once a run of troughs starts to bow, the line never looks straight again.

Our fibreglass and composite troughs are built with internal cross-bracing and thicker side walls, and some models add exterior fluting — the Divider Trough TOV2076 is a good example. That keeps the long sides flat and the run true through years of Perth sun and rain.

Choosing a material, checking the load and getting drainage right

Which material suits you comes down to where the trough is going, what the floor underneath it can carry and how exposed the spot is:

• Marine-grade fibreglass: The lightest option in our range. One person can usually carry an empty fibreglass trough through a standard garden gate and set it in place before planting, which makes it the easy choice for upper-level balconies, rooftop gardens and anywhere the only way in is up a flight of stairs. Have a look at our fibreglass collection and TOV lightweight range.
• Polystone Resin and Light Stone: Dense composite blends with the texture of cast concrete or limestone. They take knocks and trolley bumps well, which makes them a sensible pick for ground-level entries and commercial planter work.

A large trough full of wet soil is heavy, so on a balcony, rooftop or timber deck work out the saturated weight first with our potting mix calculator and check the floor rating before you fill it. On a suspended slab, have your builder confirm the load. Sit every trough on pot feet or composite risers as well, so water drains freely to the floor waste rather than leaving rings on tiles and decking. If you would rather talk it through, come and see the sizes at our Malaga showroom.

Common questions

How can I tell whether a trough is properly braced?

Look for moulded internal cross-braces spanning the long sides, and check the wall thickness at the rim. In the showroom we will show you the simple test: press outward on the centre of a long side of an empty trough. A well-braced one barely moves. Exterior fluting, as used on the Divider Trough TOV2076, adds rigidity as well. Anything over 150 cm with no visible internal bracing will bow once it is full of wet soil.

Can trough planters be used for bamboo and tall hedging?

Yes. The 1500x500x500 mm and 2000x500x500 mm formats give you 500 mm of depth and width, which is what a non-invasive clumping bamboo such as Gracilis, a Ficus flash or a Syzygium hedge needs before the roots start to constrict. Go shallower than that and you will be cutting back and replanting far sooner than you would like.

What should I consider before installing trough planters on an apartment balcony?

Three things, in this order. Work out the fully saturated weight of the soil and plants, because a full trough is much heavier than an empty one, and check the balcony floor rating before you fill it — in a strata building your builder or strata manager can confirm what the slab carries. Next, think about how it gets up there: a 200 cm trough arrives in one piece, so measure the lift, doorway widths and any stair turns. Then leave at least 900 mm of walking clearance and raise the trough on riser feet so water runs to the floor waste instead of pooling under the base. We deliver across the Perth metropolitan area and can help with freight to regional WA, and on larger projects we can come and look at the space with you first.

Can trough planters be used in commercial alfresco dining areas?

Yes, and it is one of the jobs we supply most often. Once planted, the 150 cm and 200 cm troughs are heavy enough to hold a line between dining patrons and street foot traffic, and they give you green screening at the same time. For specification work we can supply Technical Data Sheets, and where a job needs a size we do not stock, we can make a custom mould.

What finishes and colours are available for trough planters?

Cement Grey, Charcoal, White and textured stone effects are our standard finishes. If you need something closer to a Colorbond fence or a building's exterior colour schedule, we colour match in house at the Malaga workshop using Dulux Weathershield exterior acrylic. Bring in a sample or a colour code and we will match it.

Can I use self-watering inserts in trough planters?

Yes. On a covered balcony, in an atrium or in an office where nobody is watering regularly, a compatible self-watering insert sits inside the trough and keeps moisture steady from below. Tell us which model you are looking at and we will let you know what fits.