Don't Throw Out Plastic Water Bottles - Try A Money-Saving Gardening Hack Instead

Container gardening is a blessing to those of us who do not have the option of a true outdoor garden. But those containers do come with their own challenges. When you are filling your new unique and stylish planters or flowerpots, it can seem like potting soil has the same value as those rare-earth minerals we hear so much about. Who knew that buying a bag of dirt was so expensive? To cut down on the amount of dirt per pot, savvy gardeners often fill the bottom of their new pots with something other than potting soil. Rocks are a common solution, and they work great, take up space, and help maintain proper drainage. That is, until you have to move the pot to a new location and find out just how heavy those rocks actually are. If only there were something else you could use to take up space at the bottom of the planter that did not weigh so much. Enter plastic water bottles as a solution.

Plastic bottles at the bottom of a planter take up space, reducing the volume of the area you need to fill with potting soil (aka granular gold). Just like the rocks, the bottles displace the potting soil and encourage efficient drainage (essential when growing plants in containers). Like rocks, because they are plastic, they will not break down over time. However, the bottles are far lighter than their rock counterparts.

So, how do you make this money-saving hack work? It's super easy. First of all, while plastic water bottles work great, so do peanut butter containers, juice bottles, ketchup bottles, mustard bottles — you get the drift. (Anything to take up space to keep you from getting a second mortgage to pay for more potting soil.). Second, if you have them, keep the caps or lids on the plastic bottles. The reason it's good to have the caps and lids in place is because the bottles will keep their shape and be less likely to flatten out. (Displacing more of the "diamond dust" that is potting soil.) However, if you don't have the caps, don't fret. They will still work.

Fill the flowerpot or planter about half full or a little less with the bottles. At this point, you have a choice: Many gardeners put in a layer of gravel, pumice, or less expensive dirt to pack around the bottles. This will hold the bottles in place, encourage drainage, and cost a bit less than the potting soil. Some folks use landscape fabric over their bottles for this task. You can also choose to fill the remaining space with costlier potting soil, bypassing the gravel idea altogether. Tamp the dirt down to encourage it to flow around the bottles.

Plant whatever you have planned for the flowerpot or planter, and then water it thoroughly. The soil may sink down a bit when you water, with the dirt moving into any voids between the bottles because of the water. If so, take some more potting soil and add it to the planter.