Use Broken Flowerpots, Planters and China in Your Garden

If you do a bit of container gardening, chances are you've had a few broken terra cotta and ceramic pots along the way. Of course, these should be thrown away, as they are worthless and cannot perform their duty as plant holders anymore, right? Wrong!

There are several unique, creative, and useful ways you can make use of broken pots and planters- you can even use broken china and plates. Truth be told, I have actually purposefully broken thrift-store-purchased vintage china to use in my garden! Below are some ideas for ways you can turn garden disaster into garden glory.

Herb, vegetable, and flower markers

Terra cotta pots are wonderful mediums for paint and simple dark colored Sharpies permanent markers. Larger pieces of broken clay pots can be used to mark individual lots of specific herbs, vegetables, and/or flowers. The easiest method is to write, in your nicest cursive hand, the name of whatever you'd like to mark.

More elaborate measures can be taken: stenciling, craft paint, decoupage, etc.; whatever suits your fancy. After the plant name is applied, simply dig a bit of earth, place the marker appropriately, and repack firmly around the edges so it stands sturdy.

The terra cotta is durable, and in my experience of using Sharpie markers, the fragments bear the weather and elements well, and do not need sealant. Painted or decoupage pots may need a spray sealant, easily found in craft stores.

Half-buried pots and planters create an eye-catching display

If you are lucky enough to have a pot or planter break in halves or thirds, there's a really attractive way to incorporate them into your garden. Simply dig into the earth a bit, around where the broken edges will be placed.

Place the broken piece of the pot onto the ground, broken and jagged edge sides down. Push it in a bit, and pack some dirt around, so it is in firmly. The result will look like a hal-buried pot on its side, at an angle.

It's even nicer if you can place it in an area of the garden that makes it look like flowers or herbs are growing out of it. It's a really cool effect!

If you want to get fancy, of course the pot can be decorated (and sealed appropriately) any way you wish. However, it looks lovely with a simple, plain pot.

Other items can be used in a similar way. Tea cups can be half-buried sideways for a similar effect, or broken in large pieces to be buried in the same manner as broken pots as described above. Tea cups look particularly nice "holding" lavender, or small, flowery herbs.

Mosaic-inspired garden stones

Any broken pot or planter can be used to create faux stepping stones. However, it looks especially lovely when using pieces of vintage broken china with an ornate, colorful pattern. One thing to keep in mind is that broken items obviously have sharp edges. So, broken pieces of pots and plates should not be used as 'real' stepping stones; they are for decoration only. Place them away from walkways.

To place them in the ground, decide how you'd like them arranged. You can form any shape whatsoever-a spiral, initials, a butterfly, free form design, or whatever you can think of. Broken china plates actually look rather cool placed back together in their original circular shape, with about an inch or so of earth between the breaks. The result is a mosaic style piece of garden art.

Make sure not to simply place the pieces on the ground-they are sure to get washed and blown away. Place them in the same manner you would with real garden stepping stones. Uncover a layer of dirt, making sure the area is fairly even. Lay the pieces down in the arrangement you like, step on them firmly (with thick soled shoes on) to pack them in a bit, and pack some dirt around the edges. Sweep the dirt off, and sweep as needed for maintenance.

How to break a pot or plate on purpose

To purposefully break a pot or plate, place it on the ground, on which you have laid a newspaper or drop cloth of some sort. Tap the plate or pot mildly in its center, with a hammer. Wear protective eye gear, and garden gloves. If it does not break at first, tap with barely increasing force until it breaks. This is the best way to create large breaks.

If more or smaller pieces are desired for your project, use the same method with a piece of the broken pot or plate. Make sure you fold the newspaper in such a way that no shards are dropped on the ground-china shards are as sharp as broken glass, and no fun for bare feet!