The Best Brands of Zero Waste Plant Pots

Ecotribo makes plant pots in Bristol, from ghost fishing waste. Made with solar power in lovely colours and patterns, each pot includes a scannable QR code, so you can learn the journey of how your plastic pot came to be, while saving marine creatures in Cornwall and Scotland.

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.

This brand was founded by a surfer (they tend to be a pretty eco-friendly lot), this case he is from South Africa. If you’re in the market for a park bench or pub seating area, check out their lovely benches, naturally coloured from recycled fishing waste.

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’.

The Eco Planter Company (recycled pots)

The Eco Planter Company creates delightful plant pots, all made with clean energy in a variety of styles and sizes. Made from organic and recycled materials, using a low-waste process.

The planters are made from a wood and corn-based bioplastic composite, which makes them as durable and water-resistant as plastic, but far better for the planet. They look, feel and smell like wood (they can be industrially composted, look for take-back schemes at garden centres and councils).

POSIpot (plastic-free ‘take plants home’ pots)

POSIpot is not a pot to grow plants in, but more a transportation sleeve, to replace plastic pots that are sold in garden centres (90% of plastic pots sold in garden centres are used only to transport pots home, then binned within hours). This leads to waste of 500 million plastic pots in circulation each year.

These eco pots instead are made from recycled cardboard. They are flat-packed and assembled to use to make round or square pots, and are designed to slow water absorption, so plants can sit outside for around a week. The fine roots then rapidly break down, when planted.

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.

POTR Plant Pots (that water themselves!)

POTR is a range of pots inspired by origami, often made from ghost fishing waste. Sent through the letterbox, it springs into life on opening, just insert the wicking straw into the soil to watch plants thrive. It’s tall and stable enough to hold a litre of water for a bouquet of flowers, the soft silicone rim is kind to stems.

Kitchen Gardening for Beginners (regrow your leftovers!)

Kitchen Gardening for Beginners shows how to easily regrow vegetable discards and scraps, to turn them into edible plants to harvest, even if you have no gardening experience.

Stop tossing your carrot tops, leafless herb sprigs, beet greens and lettuce or celery stumps in the bin. Instead, cut back on food waste and cultivate your own homegrown veggies, with easy advice from an expert.

You can grow these plants indoors, using the instructions and photos – showing what the root section, seed, leaf, stem or other plant part should look like, when you replant it. And what it should look like, when ready for harvest. Many of the featured vegetables can be regrown in water or soil.

The book features large and small edible (some quick to grow, others take a little longer). A few of the many plants featured include:

• Celery
• Carrots
• Ginger
• Green Onions
• Herbs
• Potatoes
• Tomatoes

The author has a Bachelor and Master of Science in Horticulture and has managed botanical gardens in the USA.

Also read Indoor Kitchen Gardening,  is a beautifully-written guide to growing a bounty of organic vegetables in your own kitchen. You’ll find information on choosing a space, containers and soil, and using grow lights (not near windows to prevent bird strike).

Written by the co-founder of a community-supported-agriculture farm in Minnesota that provides seasonal food to local people, you’ll learn how to grow:

• Microgreens
• Lettuce
• Radishes
• Carrots
• Kale & Chard
• Spinach
• Peppers
• Potatoes
• Tomatoes

How to Grow Food & Flowers (in bags!)

Grow Bag Gardening shows how to grow vegetables, fruits and herbs with no heavy lifting or digging, just use eco-friendly fabric planter bags that grow easily, with minimal space and care (then just fold them up when not in use).

Ideal for rooftops, balconies and patios, these frost-proof bags are easily moved to maximise sunlight. This no-weed and no-mess method of garden is a game-changer with no root circling.