Jug Crafts for Gardening
Apr. 18th, 2025 12:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithThis is one of the comments I made over on Frugal Friday.
A translucent plastic jug (e.g. milk jug, water jug) can be used to make various garden crafts. I prefer the gallon size, but half-gallon will work for some purposes.
Labels
1) Use kitchen scissors to poke a hole just above the bottom. Cut around the perimeter to remove the bottom.
2) Remove the corner that has the handle on it. To do this, cut up one side from the bottom toward where the jug starts to narrow, then across near the top. Cut up another side to the top cut.
3) You now have a large piece of slightly curled plastic. Working from bottom to top, cut off strips about an inch wide to use as labels.
4) Rinse and dry the labels. I typically get about 8-10 from a gallon jug, depending on the exact model.
I recommend a Sharpie oil paint pen for labeling. The Sharpie "permanent" marker will wear off in just a couple months. I'm testing that: January, February, March, April.
Mini Greenhouse or Pot
The construction of these is largely the same.
1) Use kitchen scissors to poke a hole just above the bottom. Cut around the perimeter to remove the bottom.
2) Cut a slit through the collar opening where it joins the handle. This way if a plant grows big, it will break open the collar rather than strangle itself. Preferably remove the jug before that happens, but it's easy to forget if you use a lot of these things.
3) For a mini-greenhouse, simply put the jug over tender plants. You can hold it in place with garden pins or by putting mulch around it.
4) For a pot, you have two options:
-- Right side up: stuff leaves into the collar of the jug, fill it with potting soil, and put a plant in the large open space that used to be the bottom.
-- Upside down: thread a plant through the collar of the jug, whose rootball should plug it effectively, then fill the rest with potting soil.
You know that string you've been saving? Use four pieces about 2 feet long to knot a net that will hold the jug as a hanging planter.
A translucent plastic jug (e.g. milk jug, water jug) can be used to make various garden crafts. I prefer the gallon size, but half-gallon will work for some purposes.
Labels
1) Use kitchen scissors to poke a hole just above the bottom. Cut around the perimeter to remove the bottom.
2) Remove the corner that has the handle on it. To do this, cut up one side from the bottom toward where the jug starts to narrow, then across near the top. Cut up another side to the top cut.
3) You now have a large piece of slightly curled plastic. Working from bottom to top, cut off strips about an inch wide to use as labels.
4) Rinse and dry the labels. I typically get about 8-10 from a gallon jug, depending on the exact model.
I recommend a Sharpie oil paint pen for labeling. The Sharpie "permanent" marker will wear off in just a couple months. I'm testing that: January, February, March, April.
Mini Greenhouse or Pot
The construction of these is largely the same.
1) Use kitchen scissors to poke a hole just above the bottom. Cut around the perimeter to remove the bottom.
2) Cut a slit through the collar opening where it joins the handle. This way if a plant grows big, it will break open the collar rather than strangle itself. Preferably remove the jug before that happens, but it's easy to forget if you use a lot of these things.
3) For a mini-greenhouse, simply put the jug over tender plants. You can hold it in place with garden pins or by putting mulch around it.
4) For a pot, you have two options:
-- Right side up: stuff leaves into the collar of the jug, fill it with potting soil, and put a plant in the large open space that used to be the bottom.
-- Upside down: thread a plant through the collar of the jug, whose rootball should plug it effectively, then fill the rest with potting soil.
You know that string you've been saving? Use four pieces about 2 feet long to knot a net that will hold the jug as a hanging planter.
(no subject)
Date: 2025-04-19 12:00 pm (UTC)Thoughts
Date: 2025-04-19 05:11 pm (UTC)I knew that paint pens existed, having used them for other things in the past. I went to the craft store and looked at options, then bought two to compare. Sharpie is slightly better than Craftsmart, but both are MUCH better than marker.