Vertical Gardening With Plastic Bottles

Summer means we tend to drink more water, which can mean more plastic drink bottles. It's a shame not to upcycle when possible, so let's do something with those bottles…but what? We've turned our plastic bottles into a beautiful vertical garden for the children to enjoy.

Upcycled Vertical Gardening for kids is where it's at! Turn those plastic bottles into beautiful plant pots for the fence!

We have a corner of our garden that is empty and bare. I've been wanting the children to have a space they can call their own, so this is where we've set up the vertical garden. This little project will give them a sense of responsibility and ownership.

Here are the supplies we used for our vertical garden:

Plastic drink bottles
Scissors
Wood nails
Hammer
Rocks
Soil
Plants or seeds

To start off, I used a pair of sharp scissors to cut the bottles. I cut them with a higher bit at the back so that it would be easier to nail them onto the fence. Then we used a nail and the hammer to poke holes in the bottoms of the 'pots' so the water can drain out.

Turn plastic bottles into a beautiful vertical garden

The next step is to put some small rocks or pebbles in the bottom of the bottle to help with drainage. We had some rocks that had been used for landscaping so they came in handy.

Making a fence garden with upcycled materials

After you have a layer of rocks, add some soil to the pot. And if you're in a funny mood, photo-bomb the photo while trying to sneak up on your brother! It was hard not to get a photo like this one that day!

Gardening for kids

The next step is to nail the pot onto the fence. We chose to go in a diagonal pattern across the fence boards.

Tristan and Kallista then transplanted a couple of marigolds purchased just for this project.

You could incorporate a little biology lesson into this project as well. On this day we didn't, but we have referred back to it while learning about plants so that we can apply some real-world knowledge.

Making a kid's flower garden

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Tristan and Kallista are proud of their vertical garden made from plastic bottles. An old spray bottle also makes a great water spritzer to keep the plants healthy.

This hanging garden adds interest to a space that was previously boring. The children can see it from their bedroom window, and I have something to brighten my view from the kitchen window while I was the dishes.

A Vertical garden is a great way for kids to have their own responsibilities

The children have since added another 4 smaller 'pots' to their vertical garden and planted them with seeds, added a butterfly decoration and a thermometer to their wall.

If you're looking for more ideas to keep the kids busy and learning while having fun, you'd be certain to love our new book:

Learn With Play all year-round