If you’ve been gardening for more than, oh, fifteen minutes, you’ve probably got a leaning tower of plastic nursery pots somewhere. You know the ones — those ubiquitous black or terra cotta orange plastic containers that your perennials, herbs, and veggie starts come in.
I swear, they multiply like rabbits behind the garden shed, and for some reason, I can never bring myself to throw them away.
Which is probably a good thing, as you shouldn’t toss them.
Not only do those little black pots not break down in the landfill, but most of them can’t be recycled curbside, either. That means unless you make the effort to bring them to a specific recycling center (and let’s be real, who has the time?), they’re sticking around for a while.
But here’s the thing — nursery pots are incredibly useful. With a little creativity and just the tiniest bit of hoarding, you may find yourself grateful for that growing stack in the corner of the basement.
Here are some of my favorite ways to reuse nursery pots around the garden and home. Grab your stash, and let’s put those pots to work.
1. Start Next Season’s Seeds
This one’s a no-brainer. Nursery pots are made for starting seeds — literally. Just give them a soak and a good scrub in hot, soapy water, then dunk them in a ten percent bleach solution, let them dry, and they’re good to go.
You can use the smallest ones for sowing individual seeds. You can also use larger nursery pots to sow several seeds, which you can prick out and repot once they get bigger. It saves money, and it means I don’t have to buy those flimsy seed-tray setups that only seem to last for one season. Or the biodegradable peat pots, which are horrible for the environment and end up strangling your plant’s roots if you plant them in the ground.
2. Pot Up Seedlings
You know how some of us might have a tendency to start way too many seeds in March? (Ahem. I’m totally not one of them.) All those baby plants are going to need room to grow. Especially when you realize they’ve outgrown their wee seed cells about three weeks before your last frost date. Using larger nursery pots to pot up your seedlings is a smart, thrifty move. Especially if you have some taller pots, they’re great to use for my tomato seedling potting up method.
Plus, you know they’ve already grown plants once. They’ve got the good grow-juju.
3. Organize Your Potting Bench
Larger nursery pots are great for keeping your gardening bits and bobs in check. Use one for plant tags, another for seed packets, one for twine and scissors, and another for those gloves you always set down and can’t remember where.
If you’re feeling fancy, grab some chalk paint and label them. Just like that — chaos becomes order. Martha Stewart would be so proud.
4. Bottomless Pots for Garden Edging
Cut the bottom out of a bunch of gallon-sized pots, sink them halfway into the soil, and boom — instant edging. This works great for separating herbs from more invasive neighbors (mint, I’m looking at you) or for creating neat little borders around raised beds.
It’s not going to win any landscape design awards, but it will keep the horseradish from staging a coup.
5. Create Mini Greenhouses
Now and again, you’ll find clear plastic nursery pots. These are awesome for humidity domes. Place them upside down over cuttings you’re propagating, or use them out in the garden to protect tender seedlings. It’ll help retain warmth and moisture while protecting your plants from sudden frosts or curious critters.
The holes in the bottom give you just enough ventilation to keep moss from growing on your potting media.
6. Craft a DIY Self-Watering Pot
Stack a smaller nursery pot (with drainage holes) inside a larger one (without holes), and you’ll have the bones of a self-watering container. Just add a wick (cotton butcher’s string works amazingly well), some pebbles in the bottom of the larger pot (to lift the smaller pot so it isn’t sitting in the water) and water. The wick will keep the soil consistently moist — perfect for houseplants or patio herbs.
No more thirsty basil.
7. Gift Plants to Friends
We all know the only thing more satisfying than growing your own plants is sharing them. Keep a stash of clean nursery pots on hand for gifting divisions, starts, or cuttings to fellow gardeners.
Whenever I prune my Christmas cactus, I propagate some of the cladodes.
I used to give new plants away in fancy pots, but sharing them in nursery pots lets the giftee pick a pot that suits their style.
8. Protect Young Trees and Shrubs
Cut the bottom out of a large nursery pot and slip it over a young tree to act as a collar. It’ll protect the bark from string trimmers and curious critters while the plant gets established.
Bonus: it keeps the mulch from piling up against the trunk (a major no-no).
9. Use Them as Scoops
Slice a pot in half, and suddenly, you’ve got a scoop for compost or potting soil. Poke a hole in the bottom, and it’s a funnel. Keep one in the chicken coop for measuring out scratch grains and another by the compost bin.
You don’t even have to cut it in half. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve grabbed a nursery pot to use when mixing up a custom potting mix and just tossed the pot into the container with the perlite/worm castings/etc. to use again later.
10. Store Bulbs, Tubers, or Garlic
Use smaller pots to store dry bulbs or garlic after harvest. The drainage holes provide good airflow and help prevent rot during storage. Just tuck them in a cool, dry place until planting time rolls around again.
Just be sure to label what’s in each pot; otherwise, things could get interesting next season!
11. Raise Potted Plants Off the Ground
Stack nursery pots upside down underneath larger planters to give them a little lift. This is especially helpful if you’ve got patio containers that need better drainage or you’re trying to keep the bottom from staining your deck.
You can even create a whole tiered plant display using nested nursery pots. Pinterest-level resourcefulness, no budget required. (This also works great indoors with houseplants to display them in a corner at different heights.)
12. Donate Them
If your stash is truly overflowing and you’ve reused all you can, see if any local nurseries, garden clubs, or community gardens will take them off your hands. Some places even have designated return bins.
One of my favorite local nurseries starts a pile in the parking lot each year where you can return nursery pots. They use them again, and other gardeners can help themselves.
Before You Reuse…
One word of advice: clean your pots. Reusing dirty nursery pots can spread pests and diseases to your healthy plants. Give them a scrub with hot, soapy water and, if you’re the cautious type, dunk them in a diluted bleach solution. Let them dry, and they’re ready to be stacked, stored and reused.
So, before you go chucking that stack into the bin, take a second look. Those humble little pots still have a lot of growing left to do.
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