Crazy container ideas for flowers and herbs

With these rules of thumb, you’re ready to let your imagination run wild! To get you started, here are a few of the coolest containers we’ve ever seen.

Bicycle basket
Line the basket with coco fibre or sphagnum moss, a layer of plastic is optional, fill with soil, then plant. Baskets can be attached to garden fences or on the bike for a moveable feast!

Window seat
This is a stunning addition to any sunny room in the house – and just imagine, your very own hot house tomatoes—all year ‘round! If you’re blessed with a sunny bay window and cushy window seat, but no time to lounge, turn it into a planter. Take off the top, line the inside with thick, plastic pond liner, add drainage rubble, light potting soil, then plant.

Shopping bag dispenser
You know the ones—Ikea sells one for a couple of bucks—it’s a plastic cylinder with holes, a closed bottom and open top, and it’s perfect for herbs, annuals or strawberries. Hang on a sunny wall outside, line a couple of the holes with coco fibre, fill with potting soil and plant.

Chairs
You might already have a rickety old chair wooden chair in the shed or you might find the perfect one at a garage sale. Just cut out the seat so that it safely supports the lip of a terra cotta planter. Fill with soil and plant. Instant charm!

Kettles, teapots, teacups and other worn-out kitchen stuff
Chipped china, rusty kettles and even an old clay baker, all make fun planters. A bundt pan is perfect around the base of a table umbrella. Again, the main thing is drainage. Always add a layer of something at the bottom—gravel, broken bits of terra cotta—so the water can drain away from the roots.

Leaky rain boots or crocs
This is so cute! And a great way to get the kiddies stoked about gardening. Rain boots add a spot of whimsy to a veg patch – whether you place one pair on the ground or nail a whole gang to the fence in a fun arrangement. Here, drainage is easy: just make some holes in the soles.