Repurposing

We hear everywhere about recycling and reusing. It is gardening season here, time to begin planning and planting. I have already started the vegetables, admittedly pushing my luck but that is for another posting.

One night while doing the kitchen, inspiration hit. Why not turn those cans and plastic containers into gardening containers. I have for years looked at the brightly colored metal buckets designed for deck railing. The were always too tiny to fit our railing and every spring I was disappointed. Then this year it hit me, I could solve multiple problems with one stone.

So I started washing emptied aluminum tins for transformation. They are easy to clean, easy to move, and can quickly become a family project.

This is a great activity to involve the kids with, not only can they decorate their cans but they can then nurture the plant for the season. Materials aren't costly, you save tins from the landfill, and you beautify your yard. Paint can be as inexpensive or expensive as you wish, I had a mix and the inexpensive Apple Barrel Paint from Walmart performed the best by far.

I threw down some the that annoying packing paper that comes in Chewy boxes and proceeded to paint my cans. They can be as elaborate or simple as you wish. I have found that a mix of coats makes for a difference in how the cans actually look. Two coats or more of paint will provide complete coverage of the tin, this works well for painted designs. As you can tell, I freestyled mine and while they won't win a artistic prize anytime soon, they are mine and I am quite pleased with them.

I will be planting carnations in my ladybug. I admit the tin makes me smile every time I walk by.

My bumble bee has a rustic charm all her own.

I have also have recycled a dishwasher soap plastic container, which as you can see has been planted with Bells of Ireland. The plastic container has one coat of paint, you can see the product label underneath. I have a love hate relationship with this one but the flowers will far overshadow the paint irritations.

A word of advice when planting, put gravel at the bottom of the tin not only to weight the tin but to allow any excess water to drain to the bottom of the soil and act as a reservoir when life is too busy to water the plants for a day or two.

If we had kids, I would proudly be displaying their tins. These would make great personalized gifts for mother's and grandmothers.