Cat grass box for the balcony
Spring is here and the cats, like us, want to use the balcony. To give them their own personal place of relaxation, we have built a grass box for them to nibble on the grass and lie in the meadow. In addition, our grass box also has two small tree trunks where they can sharpen their claws.
Materials:
- Wood cut from the hardware store in the desired size: 4 side parts - approx. 10 cm high * 1 base plate in the desired size (our box measures 51x85 cm).
- Matching metal angles to attach the frame at right angles and to the bottom plate.
- Matching screws.
- Weatherproof lacquer or wood stain.
- Plastic tarpaulin for laying out.
- 4 "feet" (in our case, small rubber doorstop with screw), so that the water can flow under it in the rain.
- Optional: 1-2 branches in matching size (not too long) and matching metal bracket for attachment.
- Earth and grass seeds.
- Optional catnip (plant or seed).
Manual:
- From the cut side panels a rectangular frame is screwed, in the corners it is connected with metal angles.
- Then the frame is mounted on the bottom plate by screwing it to the metal brackets (in our case 2 on each side).
- Next, the entire box is painted with varnish or wood stain as needed, so that it ruggedly withstands any weather conditions.
- Once the paint has dried, the 4 feet are mounted on the bottom. In our case, we have chosen 4 small rubber doorstops, which are screwed with screws.
- Optionally, the 1-2 branches are now bolted. Here it is important to choose suitable angles and to screw the trunks together with the base plate and side panels as well as possible on several sides.
- Then a plastic tarpaulin is cut so that the ground is covered. This protects the wood even better from earth and water.
- Now the box is best placed in the right place and filled with soil.
- Now patience is needed: the earth is covered with grass seeds and watered regularly. During this time, we put a "fence" of hare wire around the box, otherwise our cats would have been digging in the ground regularly.
- After some time, the meadow grows and can be made available to the cats!
Our cats love this place. They lie in the sun in the meadow, nibble grass and scratch the trunks. The box is now with us for several years and is replanted every year with fresh grass. In a corner, we also like to plant catnip, they love them too.
In the meantime, we have added a small board (slice of a thick branch) for our athletic cat, who likes to climb the whole trunk and then enjoy her vantage point. A complete success as a cat on the balcony.
Have fun copying and pleasant relaxation to all cats!
