This Earth Day, get your hands a little dirty with some good old fashioned container gardening!
While the image above may make you think we're going to make some holiday gifts a few months too early, the real project today is about reusing household items into some fun planters!
Why reuse old items?
- To save money
- To save you a trip to the store
- It is better for the environment
- It will make the story behind your project even cuter!
You know what else is good for the environment? Plants! I selected some small succulents to use for this project because they do will both indoors and outdoors with the bonus fact that they are very low maintenance.
For this project you will need:
- Mugs...or any other container you have around your house. Bonus points for cuteness
- Some activated carbon if these plants will be indoors (found near indoor plants at the nursery or at pet stores by the aquariums)
- Decorative rocks
- Plants of appropriate size (I'm using 1 inch succulents from the flea market)
- Soil (I'm using soil specifically design for cacti/succulents, but anything will do)
Project Time:
5-10 minutes, depending on the number of plants you have and how often you break to take photos
Steps:
- Gather your supplies and move outdoors, if possible
- If your plants will be indoors...scoop a healthy layer of carbon into your container, covering the bottom of the container
- Add a layer of rocks above the carbon (or add a layer of rocks to the bottom, if your planters will be outdoors). You are creating a barrier between your carbon and the soil
- Add soil almost to the top of your container
- Remove succulent from packaging and remove a bit of the soil from the bottom to promote rooting
- Add succulent to your container, gently pushing soil around to make room
- Once the succulents are in place and secure, add rocks around the base and cover the soil. Your succulents like to be hugged by these rocks and they will help with moisture control
- If the plants are particularly dry, give them a few squirts with a squirt bottle, but not too much!
- Dust off the leaves of your plants and you're done!
Other container ideas: Mason jars, vases, vintage planters, soup bowls, vintage Pyrex, an old fish bowl.
While Earth Day is only once a year, you can add to your garden with these reused containers practically year round!
What do you have around your home that can be used in your garden?
Kam is behind Campfire Chic, a blog focusing on the her life as crafty camper with a penchant for social media, organization, and lists. Kam lives in Southern California with her boyfriend and works full time in addition to Campfire Chic. She is currently working on a quilt made out of vintage sheets, her first attempt at Project Life, and planning her next outdoor adventure. Follow Kam on Twitter for up-to-the-second updates or the Campfire Chic newsletter for less frequent (but still fun!) updates.
A note from Katie- I love the idea of reusing old coffee mugs and other random objects to use as planters! Thanks, Kam, for a wonderful idea!
A note from Katie- I love the idea of reusing old coffee mugs and other random objects to use as planters! Thanks, Kam, for a wonderful idea!