3. Your Recycling Bin
Check your discard bins and piles for items that can be reused in the garden. Shutters. If your neighbors are updating their home’s exterior, ask if you can have the old shutters. Shutters make great raised beds, because they’re easy to customize to fit whatever garden size you want. Wine bottles. If you needed an excuse to enjoy a glass of wine, here it is! But if you’re not a wine connoisseur or drinker, ask around local pubs or wineries for empty bottles. Line up and arrange the bottles to form a garden bed, fill the inside with soil and plant away. Cinderblocks. These are inexpensive, even if you can’t find them in a discard or odds-and-ends pile. To make them more attractive and personalized, add mosaics to the top.
4. Empty Nester Supplies
When kids grow out of their childhood things, repurpose them into useful items for growing plants. Outgrown goods. If they outgrow their boots, plant flowers in them. Turn a used crib into a garden bed. Old changing table? An instant display for containers! Kiddie pools. Those plastic pools are only useful when the kids are pint-sized. Add drainage holes and you’ve got yourself a fun (and portable) raised bed. Swing set. Many parts of a wooden swing set can be repurposed in the garden. If a sandbox was attached, make a flower bed. The ropes and chains serve as supports for climbing plants. A tire swing transforms into a place to grow flowers.
5. Plain Quirky
Looking for something fun and unique? These ideas take your garden from ordinary to off-the-wall. Interlocking blocks. The little kid inside you will love this Lego-like raised bed growing set. After a successful Kickstarter campaign, Togetherfarms sells these awesome raised bed kits on Amazon for around $70. They are made from food-safe recycled plastic and are easily assembled like Legos— no tools necessary. Watering troughs. Though normally meant for farm duty, these galvanized multipurpose bins look sleek planted with bright flowers or vegetables. You can find them at a farm merchandise store or by asking a generous farmer who’s getting rid of one.