I don't know about you,
but during the warm weather, I like to spend a little time every day
in my garden. I enjoy getting my hands dirty, spending time in
nature, and finding creative ways to improve my garden space. So,
today, I'm sharing with you 5 easy ways to do so.
1- Brick Markers
Over the years, I've
tried lots of different ways to mark my plants. There aren't very
many ones that have held up over time. However, these simple markers
have lasted the longest, and are really cute and easy to make.
Supplies:
Bricks (1 per plant)
Black Sharpie
(optional) Stencil
Directions:
It's really just this
simple. Write the name of the plant on a brick. If you want a
specific style of letters, feel free to use a stencil. Over time,
the sharpie will fade, but you can always trace over your original
letters again, or leave it faded if you like the way it looks.
http://simpledetailsblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/brick-herb-markers.html
2- Tomato Cage Container
Trellis
I do a lot of container
gardening because my husband and I rent, and I get attached to my
plants. Over the years I've found a few tricks to growing just about
everything in a container. If you want to grow a vine, you need a
trellis. The easiest trellis I've ever used is a tomato cage.
Supplies:
2 wire Tomato Cages
Several black zip ties
Container (filled with soil
and your awesome vine)
Wire cutters
(optional) Colorful paint,
or green if you want them to blend in with your vine
Directions:
1- Using the wire cutters,
cut the legs off both tomato cages, reserving the legs for later use
2- Nestle one tomato cage
inside the other, turning them to make sure the long, vertical wires
are alternating.
3- Fasten them with zip ties
to hold them in place at the intersections.
4- Optional* Paint the
tomato cages and let dry
5- Bend the legs (from step
1) in half, like hair pins, and use them to stake the tomato cages
down into the soil around your vine.
You can also make a really
tall trellis by using 4 tomato cages and stacking two, upside down,
on top of the original 2.
https://www.lowes.com/creative-ideas/lawn-and-garden/flowerpot-trellis/project
3- Pallet Gardens
Two awesome trends in
home gardening right now are raised beds and vertical gardens. You
can use a recycled pallet to achieve both. There are lots of
designs, from the very simple, to the not so simple, but I'm going to
give you the simplest two designs that I have used.
Supplies:
Pallets (as many as you need
for the space you want to cover), you can usually find them free at
the dumpster of just about any big, box store
Cardboard or Landscaping
paper
Staple gun and staples (for
the landscaping paper)
Soil
Plants
Directions:
1- The easiest to do is a
basic raised bed. Just lay your cardboard over the ground, place
your pallet on top, add in the soil and start planting. The
cardboard will kill the grass/weeds under your raised bed and will
break down over time, improving the soil as it does.
2- The other design can be
used either as a raised bed, or as a vertical garden.
1- Place your pallet upside
down, if there isn't much support, add some in using scrap wood, just
make sure it's even down the back.
2- Double or triple the
landscaping paper. Lay it on the back of the pallet and start
stapling. I wrap the paper around to the front of the pallet,
framing it, to add support and prevent the loss of too much soil.
3- Fill the pallet with
soil, and plant you garden!
4- If you want to use it as
a vertical garden, after a few weeks (to allow the plants to take
root) just prop it up on an outside wall!
http://snappypixels.com/interesting/25-diy-ideas-using-pallets-for-raised-garden-beds/
http://www.designsponge.com/2011/09/diy-project-recycled-pallet-vertical-garden.html
4- Nesting Planter Towers
Container gardening is
awesome. You can move plants around in your garden without
transplanting, you can move them inside, or you can use them to be
very decorative. Here are two ideas to use multiple containers to
create towers of plants.
Supplies:
A center bar, smaller in
diameter than the hole in the bottom of your terracotta pots
Several terracotta pots, all
different sizes
(optional) Paint
Soil
Plants
Directions:
1- Optional* Paint/decorate
your pots and let them dry.
2- Stick your bar in the
ground, or in the bottom, largest, pot. (I don't recommend moving it
after it's assembled, so build it where you want it to be.)
3- Place your pots on top of
one another, threading them onto the bar, then filling them ¾ with
soil. You can choose to keep them upright, or tilt them for a
different, more whimsical look.
4- Continue until all your
pots are stacked, filling the top pot all the way with soil.
5- Plant your garden!
http://balconygardenweb.com/genius-vertical-gardening-ideas-for-small-gardens/
http://weheartthis.com/2013/05/14/diy-garden-project-topsy-turvy-flower-planter/
5- Easy-Harvest Potato Pot
I don't know about you,
but I love potatoes. I hate harvesting them though. Or at least I
did until I saw a tutorial for making this pot.
Supplies:
2 Plastic pots (one slightly
smaller than the other)
X-Acto knife
Soil
Potatoes
Directions:
1- Using the x-acto knife,
cut large squares out of the smaller pot.
2- Nestle the smaller pot in
the larger pot.
3- Add soil and get to
planting!
4- When it's time to
harvest, just lift the smaller pot out and pick the potatoes out of
the sides.
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/539306124109902472/
I hope you find these ideas
helpful and fun. If you have any questions or comments, please leave
them below!
No comments:
Post a Comment