Upcycling ideas for the garden

  • By Sarah Wolfe Associated Press
  • Tuesday, September 17, 2013 5:12pm
  • Life

Looking for a cheaper way to fertilize flowers or keep pests at bay? A better tool for planting tiny seeds?

The answers may lie in your home, where common household items like coffee grounds or old pie tins can become easy, eco-friendly tools to give your garden a boost without breaking the bank.

“You can take anything you have and upcycle it,” suggests Stacy Tornio, editor of Birds &Blooms magazine.

Some simple, easy ways to repurpose household items:

Creative containers

Plant herbs, flowers and houseplants in everything from worn boots to old teapots and even bathroom sinks.

Justin Cave, an Atlanta-based landscaper and former host of HGTV’s “Ground Breakers,” recently turned old shipping pallets into a vertical garden by covering the backs and sides with landscape fabric, stuffing them with dirt, and planting succulents and flowers in the slatted openings.

Garden tools

Table utensils like spoons, forks and knives are tough and sharp enough to do many gardening jobs without causing damage, Tornio said. Use them to separate flats, lift seedlings and tease apart dense root balls.

Knives can also make a slim path for tiny seeds to fall into.

Repurpose old utensils as garden markers and borders for flower beds.

Nylon pantyhose can be used to tie up floppy plants or line the bottom of pots so water can get through but dirt cannot.

Packing peanuts are also a good drainage medium, Tornio said.

Homemade remedies

Coffee grounds can be sprinkled at the bottom of any plant to improve drainage in clay soils, and especially plants that like rich, moist organic soils like azaleas and blueberries, Tornio said.

Soap can keep deer from feasting on trees and plants. Tornio suggests breaking a bar of soap into pieces and hanging them from strings or in old nylons or net bags on trees or other structures near prime deer feeding areas.

Terry Grahl, of the Michigan-based nonprofit Enchanted Makeovers, uses the guts left over from her husband’s fishing trips as fertilizer.

Finely crushed egg shells can be used as compost or to add calcium to soils, while larger pieces keep snails and slugs at bay, according to Florida’s Manatee County Extension Service.

Whimsical decor

Create a “bottle garden” by placing empty bottles over tree branches, says Sara Jenkins-Sutton, of Chicago-based Topiarius Urban Garden.

“When your cheese grater starts to turn rusty, turn it over, hang it on a deck and fill it with flowers, plants or outdoor chalk,” she said.

Scatter vintage chairs or old farm equipment throughout your garden to add height and depth, or make a funky wind chime out of old wine bottles.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.