How To: Recycled Colander Planter

Here's a quick diy re-purposing project to give you a little inspiration for the weekend — old kitchen colander turned into a hanging garden planter...

You might remember we picked up a few new colanders on our most recent trip to Ikea. Well, we'd been using my beloved big green one for years — it had been a Christmas a gift from the kids way back when and became an immediate go-to favorite in the kitchen.

You can see by all the rust spots it's gotten lots of use and love over the years:

When the inevitable time came to upgrade the colander, as silly as it sounds, Mary and I were a little sentimental over the thought of getting rid of the old green one. So, we decided to re-purpose it into a hanging planter we can use year after year in the garden. This way, it won't matter how weather-worn it gets.

A planter turned out being a great new use for the old colander since it has a large deep bowl for soil and plenty of drainage holes all over it. To make the planter, we just cut a circle of burlap fabric (from our Blanchard's coffee sacks) slightly larger then the circumference of the colander and fitted it inside the bowl. The burlap fabric will help hold the soil in the container while still allowing for drainage.

Once the fabric was in place, we filled the colander up with gardening soil and decided to test it out with a handful of organic radish seeds for its first run in the "urban" garden:

To turn the colander into a hanging planter, we cut a long strip of gardening twine, doubled it over on itself and lopped  it through both of the colander handles, knotting securely:

Hang your new planter, making sure it drops evenly and give a good watering to get things going:

What's that pallet you say —stay tuned, we have had plans for that which will be revealed next week.

Yes, it's that simple of a project! Ok, everyone can comment on what you imagine I am staring at up there!

Here's how we're looking a few weeks later with some brand new radish sprouts:

So excited for these to grow and mature!

If you don't want to start seeds in your planter, you could plant a hearty variety of fresh flowers, make an herb garden or other greenery — and if you don't want to make it a hanging planter, it could make a quirky centerpiece, sure to start a few conversations around you next table gathering.

Now, hopefully you've got some new inspiration for re-purposing old kitchen gadgets that might otherwise be headed for the landfill. As for us, we're thrilled to have a new set of kitchen colanders for regular use, but still be able to hold onto this one the kids gave me — just with a new little twist.

Discover More:

* More DIY Projects | All Gardening Projects *