What "trash" containers have YOU used this Spring?

[ducks4you]

I feel so much at home on TEG!! It is truly gratifying to see everybody else using things that we throw away, for gardening, like yogurt containers, paper towel rolls, and, of course, vegetable throw-aways (for compost, OF COURSE!!) So, here is MY list of "trash" that I use for gardening:
1) paper towel/tp rolls, boxes from soap and 4-stick butter boxes--I started ALL of my tomatoes in these this year!!
2) 1 cup & 4 cup yogurt containers, marjarine tubs and other plastic tubs--great toput under pots for self-watering
3) foam bottoms from buying meat/vegatables at the grocery store (They keep my porch ledge dry when I put pots on them!)
4) leftover 2x4's, 2x6's, 2x8's, pieces of plywood, pieces of MDF (for my raised beds)
5) plastic vegetable/fruit containers with holes and self-lid--like the containers you buy strawberries in)--great mini greenhouses
6) ALL pots from vegetables, plants and trees that I've bought in the past
7) ALL used peat pots still intact
8) baling twine and baling wire--to make fencing from
9) cut down saplings--weed trees, that blasted "tree of paradise" that grows 5 ft/year!!!!
10) Recycled chicken wire fencing--to keep my two dogs OUT OF MY GARDEN BEDS!!!!
What's on YOUR "trash" ...I guess I should say, "ReCycling" List?

 

[nittygrittydirtdigger]

Yeah, I use most of that. One thing that I use...and I'm almost ashamed to have them!...is the Enchirito trays from Taco Bell. The bottoms are fairly shallow but the tops are a few inches high and are clear plastic, so they make nice mini-domes for starting small plants. I also use my Simply Orange plastic bottles as cloches, just cut the bottom off. I leave the lids off, too.

 

[hoodat]

I bought some gotu kola the other day. It's a bog plant and I was puzzling over how to kep it wet enough till I remembered a small ice chest that was worn out. I buried it in the ground to the top and left the stopper off the drain. It should keep it wet and the small drain will avoid standing water for skeeters to breed in.

 

[ninnymary]

I used the soup take-out clear plastic containers for my cloches. I didn't have to do anything to them!

Mary

 

[hoodat]

Those are great. I don't have any need for cloches here in San Diego but I use them to scoop dog food and laundry detergent and to plant in. They're also handy for freezing small portions of stew etc.

 

[Greenthumb18]

I'm using those aluminium food trays for planting all my seeds in, it seems to do a good job. I even think the aluminium insulate the seedlings better.

 

[ninnymary]

Those are great. I don't have any need for cloches here in San Diego but I use them to scoop dog food and laundry detergent and to plant in. They're also handy for freezing small portions of stew etc.

I use them to cover my basil at night to keep snails away. Every morning when I go to let my chickens out, I take them off and every evening when I go to lock the chickens in, I put them back on.

Mary

 

[lesa]

My favorite container of all time, is a quart container (my organic soy milk, comes in them). They are waxed cardboard. I cut them in half, rinse and poke a hole in the bottom. Of all the things I have tried, these last the best, hold the most moisture, are easy to transplant, etc. I start saving in the winter and by spring have quite a collection! Love recycling and reusing!!!

 

[deakc]

OK, I remember year ago that in LA lots of people would just feed hay from large plastic trash cans.

If you eye bolted them to the corner of the stall all what would be the downside? could they climb in and kill themselves???

 

[SuperChemicalGirl]

I got a gigantic plastic bucket from a friend who raises cows. It used to contain a cow salt-lick. I was going to use it as a chicken brooder except then I realized it would do nicely as a squash hill.

Drilled some holes in the bottom...

Now I just have to find something else to brood more chickens in. Last hatch of the season happens in 2 days!