Gardener shares brilliant way to make use of old food containers: 'This is galaxy-brained to me'

A gardener shared an ingenious way to reuse old food containers in the garden, saving money and keeping items out of the landfill at the same time. 

The scoop

In the r/gardening subreddit, the gardener explained that they reuse their old yogurt and cottage cheese containers (the larger ones) as planters for seedlings and smaller plants.

"I drilled some drainage holes and used the lids as a saucer," they explained in their caption. They also shared in a comment that they use a hot glue gun to "make some ridges on the lid saucer to create space for the water to drain from the holes/hold more water."

The gardener even upcycled an old box to get their potted plant closer to the grow light they use indoors. 

How it's helping

Repurposing their empty food containers is a great way to save money as a gardener, especially if you're just starting out and don't want to spend on a bunch of materials. 

It also keeps items out of landfills by finding a new use for them, especially important when dealing with single-use plastic like food containers, which can be recyclable depending on their contents, but often get tossed anyway. 

According to the United Nations, about 36% of all plastic produced is used in packaging, and about 85 % of that ends up in landfills. Once in a landfill, plastic takes years and years to break down, and while it does, it releases microplastics and other substances into the environment, according to the National Institute of Health. 

There are lots of hacks when it comes to repurposing items that might otherwise be thrown away, as well as companies offering deals and incentives to do so. Trashie and ThredUp both offer credits and deals for sending in your old clothes, and Staples offers a reward program for recycling a wide variety of items.

What everyone's saying

In the comments, people loved the idea the gardener presented. 

One person wrote, "This is galaxy brained to me."

What is the biggest reason you don't grow food at home? Not enough time ⏳ Not enough space 🤏 It seems too hard 😬 I have a garden already 😎 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

Some noted that the plastic containers can break down after a couple of years if used outdoors, but the OP replied, "Luckily for me these are all staying inside!"

Others offered additional suggestions to repurpose the containers, like one commenter who wrote, "I use mine too freeze stuff and send [people] away with leftovers."

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