Repurposed Container Gardening

We started our kitchen gardening at the beginning of Spring and a lot has popped up since -- salad greens, beans, and sunflowers. A few of these, we've transferred to the ground, but the rest, like this bean plant here, were left in their planters. I don't know what container gardening means for you, but for us, it calls for some serious repurposing of empty vessels.

We started our seeds in anything from plastic take-out containers (which make excellent mini-greenhouses), tin cans, egg cartons, yogurt cups, and pasta sauce jars. Sometimes, it's fun giving these containers a little makeover.

Other times, their original states bring enough pizazz to be left alone. We had a dozen or so of these Bionicle containers and they were perfect little planters because, not only was the material strong and dark colored, there were pre-drilled drainage holes on the bottoms!

For support, we sinked craft sticks, dowels, and disposable chopsticks to the containers and simply held the plants in place with twist ties. Clothes pins -- either the spring or old fashioned variety -- make for excellent markers. Embellish them if you please and attach to the side of the planter.

If this photo looks familiar, it's because it is the same plant as the banner header, one month later. I had removed the lid to let all that life force spill out like a little Jar Of Plenty. It smells of arugula and is fun to watch the leaves busting through. [UPDATE: banner has since changed]

At this point, the plants all seem pretty well established. Hopefully, they can thrive in their little spaces until they flower! Stay tuned...