The Self-Care Planter (waters plants for weeks)

The Self-Care Planter is an amazing little invention for forgetful gardeners! Or if you were going on holiday etc. It’s a ceramic foot-spa, that basically happily keeps your plants watered for weeks at a time. Perfect for plants and potted herbs, just fill with water, the dip the pot’s little feet into the water.

His cotton legs slowly draw up the perfect amount of water, keeping the soil from drying out! The pot is sold in a plastic-free box with instructions.

Don’t leave full watering cans around, as small creatures could drown. Many plants (including all bulbs and sago palm) are unsafe near animals (read more on pet-friendly gardens). Avoid facing indoor foliage to outdoor gardens, to stop birds flying into windows.

Myth: indoor plants don’t ‘clean the air’

Be careful what you read in the media about ‘indoor plants to clear the air’. This is a 30-year old myth based on old NASA technology (the only way this could happen, would be if you literally covered a room in so many plants that you wouldn’t be able to see or move!)

Where to recycle plastic plant pots

Enter your postcode at Recycle Now to find out where – some gardening centres accept them. Black plant pots (like black bin bags) can’t be recycled, as sorting machines don’t recognise the colour, so they have to go in your normal rubbish bin.

Each year, over 500 million plastic plant pots (and trays) are thrown away in the UK, generating waste at landfills or incineration depots. Yet most councils don’t accept them, due to being ‘contaminated with soil’.