Costco Shoppers Are In Love With This High-Tech Portable Planter

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

I love pottering about the yard, tinkering with tomato plants (maybe I'll try an heirloom variety this summer), but not so much my back or my knees, which have started to loudly disagree with these life choices. If that's you too, instead of swinging by Costco's pharmacy, hot-foot it to the lawn care and gardening section for a self-watering elevated spruce planter from CedarCraft. It's not the cheapest bit of kit at $189.99 (at the time of writing, though availability and prices may vary), but you get a lot of bang for your buck.

The planter stands at 1.75 feet wide, 3.9 feet long, and 2.6 feet high, and the internal space will hold 4.8 cubic feet of soil and likely not an ounce more — we'll explain why later. It comes in three colors (gray, beige, and brown) and is made from sustainably sourced, PEFC-certified Canadian spruce. In a win-win for eco-friendly folks, CedarCraft will plant two trees to offset delivery emissions for every planter sold.

The self-watering system holds a hefty six gallons and works by drawing water up eight square "wells" that sit in the reservoir. It allows you to be away from home for a few days without coming back to a graveyard of wizened, overcooked plants. A cute gauge at the side of the planter helps you keep an eye on the water levels. My favorite feature is that the whole thing is on lockable casters, so you can move plants in or out of the sun as required.

The self-watering planter has racked up a solid average rating of 4.3 on Costco's website, of which 1,000 are five-star reviews. One customer said their planter was "beautiful, practical, and larger [than] expected." Another was pleased the wooden finish hadn't faded in the Arizona sun, while a third enthused: "This is the perfect small garden for our rooftop. Easy assembly, easy to move and self watering!"

A sprinkling of customer reviews did say the bottoms of their planters sagged or fell through completely, but in some cases, that could be down to poor assembly, overloaded planters, or just heavy rainstorms. Read the instructions carefully, consider trying this genius pool noodle hack to help keep under the soil limit, and put them under cover in bad weather to avoid all three issues.

These Costco planters are great for anyone short of space to wiggle their green fingers, but even if you have a bigger yard, they're handy. They make gorgeous, portable flower beds, giving splashes of color wherever you want them. If you prefer a planter to grow your own veggies and fruit, CedarCraft's planter has another trick up its sleeve. You can pair it with the company's greenhouse cover, creating the perfect environment to kick-start your seeds. Add nutrients to the reservoir – many plants love the potassium in leftover potato water — and you've got your own hydroponics system too. Happy planting!