Container plantings offers a fun opportunity to add unexpected creativity around our homes and gardens. I love to use discarded items like cans, boxes, boots, birdhouses even old gourds. The creative options are limited only by our vision and willingness to be unconventional. I look around at things with an eye for color, scale, texture and a cavity that can hold soil and plants. The process is easy, if the container doesn’t have a way to drain water, I punch or drill holes in the bottom, add a drain field by filling the lower quarter of the container with gravel or broken pot shards, then I fill the rest of the container with the proper soil type, plant and enjoy.
Air plants need no soil and add whimsy to a space.
Colorful wooden boxes make a great place to cluster plants…
indoors and out.
Old garbage cans and wheel barrels make fun and unexpected container planters…
as do old buckets and tubs.
Worn out birdhouses or feeders work great and add a little playfulness to a space..
Baskets are classic containers but hanging them on an outside wall can be unexpected.
Old crates are sought after for interior styling, but this one was missing the bottom which made it perfect for my courtyard.
I love colorful labels and the paper on a can will last longer when sealed; but sometimes I remove the label and simply let the can rust.
I confess I sometimes buy a products based on packaging, if it can be creatively repurposed I want it.
But sometimes a repurposable package is just a lucky extra.
