Upcycle These Items into Plant Pots

Gardening can be an expensive hobby, between buying the plants (especially if you’re using starters and not seeds or clippings), good soil, and, unless you’ve got an in-ground garden, plant pots. Here are some upcycled items I’ve turned into pots!

5-Gallon Buckets

I love them because they’re easy to come by. You can get them for about $4.00 at most stores, but they’re also an item a lot of people have tucked away in the garage. Of course, if you’ve used them for painting, you might not want to put your tomatoes in them, so plan accordingly! 

Tip: Drill holes about an inch from the bottom of the bucket, all the way around, to give some drainage.

Tires

Maybe it’s just New Orleans, but I found a bunch of tires on the side of the road around here. No joke, my husband and I, a few years ago, walked (well, rolled) three tires home once to use them for our little garden. If you live in an area that’s not so care-free with leaving unwanted items on the side of the road, you could hold onto old tires that get a flat.

Tip: Put a sheet underneath them to hold in the dirt. 

A drum

Like I said above, in New Orleans, you find stuff on the side of the road. A few years ago, we found three drums. One became a storage compartment and the other two, planters. Like with the tires, I placed an old sheet inside of the drum and filled it with dirt before planting my seedlings. Although quite unconventional, they are probably my favorite plant pots. 

Tip: The drums I used do not have any bottom (hence the sheet). If yours does, don’t forget to poke holes for drainage.

The opportunities for garden pot upcycling are really endless. Yogurt containers would be great, as would coffee containers. I’ve heard of people filling shoe organizers with herbs. Turn an old window into a trellis. Peruse thrift stores and yard sales (or the curb!) and see what you can find to plant something new. 

Thanks for reading!

💜

Laura