how to: tin can plant & herb marker

fill a tin with dirt

Here’s how :)

1. Pierce holes in the base of your clean tin can (I like to stick with the old hammer and nail, but you can use a drill if you so desire).

2. Take a plant from its pot and fill tin can halfway with soil.

3. Gently press basil plant into soil in can.

4. Fill up to top with soil and press gently. Water well and keep on the windowsill for fragrant fresh herbs at the fingertips.

what you will need

metal stamps

Last year I bought myself this fantastic metal stamping kit to create herb markers which I made forĀ a very good friend of mine for her wedding late last year, and also for my sister’s new garden.

engrave

I have had a lot of fun with these babies… labeling my wooden utensils (one for baking, one for cooking of course) and stamping name tags for Christmas presents on tiny antique teaspoons.

fill in the engraving with black felt pen
(tip: covering the stamped letters with black ink, then wiping over with a cloth helps the letters pop)

This is just one of the many creative uses for tin cans. When you eat kidney beans and crushed roma tomatoes as much as we do you learn to become resourceful with the recyclables…!

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9 thoughts

  1. Haha the life of the student eh. Athough I don’t think things will change much when I’m no longer a student.. Let me know if you give these a go! So simple and yes, perfect for small kitchens!

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  5. What a cool idea! Everything green usually dies under my supervision; but it doesn’t stop me from going into a gardening mode every two years or so. Do you have an end product picture (the gift set you made for your sister and friend’s wedding) by any chance? Just want to see what a tin garden should look like…

    • Unfortunately I don’t! I didn’t take photos of the complete set – it was the cutlery herb markers I gave them, rather than tin plants. But I do think a triplet of tin plants would be a very neat gift. I haven’t worked out yet what to sit the tins on for the water to drain onto. They will rust whatever they sit on which means saucers/plates aren’t a good idea.

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