You don’t have to be the world’s best gardener, handyman and it doesn’t have to cost the earth.
Reusing old pallets, used tyres and household items teaches us to be respectful of waste, the waste hierarchy (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) and sustainability of resources.
With a little imagination and hard work, lots of things can be constructed from the items that might normally be discarded.
Some ideas we have for old pallets might be:
Strawberry and herb planters, hanging planters, garden shelves, vertical walled gardens, pallet habitats, compost boxes, worm composters, a range of garden furniture and wheelie bin storage.
Here is a pallet habitat that we have built using pallets, leftover decking, old terracotta plant pots, drilled branches and garden canes. Creating valuable habitats such as bug houses, bird boxes, frog and hedgehog homes, we all can take part in preserving our garden wildlife.
SAFETY FIRST – take care to ensure that all hazards; splinters, sharp objects such as nails are removed before using or working with old pallets or reclaimed wood.
Old tyres can take hundreds of years to degrade, so by putting them to further use is a great contribution to environmental sustainability. Tyres look great in colour, either fully painted or hand decorated by children with acrylic paints.
Some ideas for old tyres are:
Children’s play boxes (filled with sand or wood chips), swings, miniature ponds (with a liner), planters, borders and garden furniture.
SAFETY FIRST – take care, only use tyres that are cleaned and intact. Been mindful that tyres can get very hot on hot summer days. Ensure that collected water in standing tyres is emptied regularly.
Stanfree Valley Preservation Group 