Recycling isn’t just about tossing items in the blue bin””it’s also about finding creative ways to reduce your household waste, and give new life to old objects! Now that we’re all trying to cut back on trips to the store and stay home more, it’s definitely worthwhile to focus on making use of what’s already available to us. 

Since the gardening season is just kicking off, you might find yourself wanting some new stuff for the year ahead. Recycling something to create something new will save you money, and will feel surprisingly rewarding! Try these five recycled garden projects so that you can show off to your neighbours with your impressive recycling prowess. 

5 Recycled Garden Projects To Try In 2020

These DIY garden projects will be a fun way to kill time leading up to May, when we can start getting our plants in the ground and really dive into gardening. You may very likely have the necessary materials already lying around the house! 

Lego Planter

Most of us with kids have at least one Rubbermaid full of old Lego in all sorts of colours. You can actually build a pretty sweet planter out of Lego, and while there are lots of different designs and layouts you can find online, really, you can customize yours to your heart’s content. Just make sure it has a good base so that it doesn’t get knocked over or fall apart. You can build into any size or shape, just make sure to “skip” a few small blocks at the bottom, so water has a place to escape. Fill with soil and seeds (or starter plants), and it’s good to go!

Clustered Can Planter

We’re going through canned goods at record speeds right now””especially those jumbo tins of coffee””and there are so many things you can do with them instead of tossing them in the waste bin. If you peel off the labels, give them a fresh coat of paint, and add some drainage holes into the bottom with a drill, you’ve got a perfectly good plant pot. You can go minimalist and use a few as accents, but we love the idea of clustering together a bunch of cans in all different shapes and colours and using them as a centrepiece on a patio table. Or, you can set up a shelf outside and line up all your cans along the edge. Fill them with flowers, colourful foliage plants like coleus, or some herbs and small vegetables.

From Bicycle To Recycle: Make A Wheel Trellis

There’s something so elegant about vining plants that naturally creep up tall structures, spreading their bright leaves and flowers. But when you throw in a cool, upcycled trellis into the mix, it creates an especially neat effect that’s somewhere at the crossroads of vintage and modern style. I’ve seen some pretty awesome trellises made from old bike wheels””a single wheel looks fantastic on its own, placed in a garden bed to rest up against the house. Some folks have even taken it a step further, attaching several wheels in a stack, and painting them different colours.  

Solar Light Chandelier

More than a few of us have an old, dated chandelier in storage that harkens back to the days of shag carpets, 8-track players and questionable hairdos. While they might not seem like a great fit for your current indoor decor, it’s incredible what a fresh coat of metal-friendly spray paint can do to give that tacky light fixture a new lease on life. Creating an outdoor solar chandelier will add some serious ambience to your backyard landscape. If you have any of those solar stake lights to stick in the garden, you can simply remove the stake attachment, glue the lights into each part of the fixture where the electric bulbs would typically go, and then hang it up on your patio for some extra light at night.

Give New Life To Old Gadgets

With a little creativity and a bit of elbow grease, it isn’t too hard to transform an ordinary object into a usable planter. If it can withstand the elements outdoors without getting totally destroyed, and it can be hollowed out, then you can probably put a plant in it. Search your basement for any old items that have a cool look to them””think old radios, clunky landline telephones, clocks, or computer monitors. Then, with some protective gloves to prevent yourself from getting poked, cut out the top and remove any wires or junk on the inside so that you can replace it with soil. These DIY planters look especially cool when you fill them with an assortment of succulents””it creates that perfect juxtaposition of trendy style and vintage nostalgia. 

Got any other fresh ideas for ways you could repurpose old stuff for your garden? Look around your garage or basement for any once-loved items that are collecting dust, and see if you can make some magic with it! And, if you’re looking for some new plants to fill your upcycled containers with, don’t hesitate to call us or order online. We’re happy to arrange for curbside pickup and or delivery.