Metal containers without drain holes

12 years ago

So! My mom brought over these adorable containers.

{{gwi:46019}}

They are metal, and without any drain holes. I am afraid that if I plant directly in them, they will rust, as well as collect way too much water.

Where would I get plastic liners for these? The liners wouldn't drain either though, so how do I solve this problem of no draining? I just don't get it. How do you plant in things with no drainage holes without having plants rot?

Could I leave these adorable pots outside, or would they just rust? Maybe they are for indoors. Not a clue.

Thanks!

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Comments (5)

greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
12 years ago
I would drill holes, spray the inside with a rust-proof paint, and then set pots with drainage
holes in the planter. If you want to seal the exterior surfaces, too, that would increase the
longevity.

Josh
terrybull
12 years ago
red, where did your mother get them?
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redthreaddiy
Original Author
12 years ago
She got them from Meijer, but I think on clearance, so I'm not sure if they'd have liners there as well. Hmm... Rust proof paint sounds like a good idea. Thanks for the tips! Still wondering where I can get the liners though, thanks!
valentinetbear
12 years ago
Warning, no matter what you do - sooner or later, (assuming you're planting something in them or leaving them outside) they will rust.

I have my prickly pear cactus sitting in a galvanized tub. They've been there for several years now, and the bottom hasn't rusted out yet. I lined it with a regular black trash bag and poked holes in both the plastic and bottom. (Then I just filled it with cactus mix.)

Also, watch out for mosquitoes. Those suckers don't need much water to grow a new batch of suckers. You might consider getting some of those biodegradable thingies (sorry, I don't know their names) that people place in their garden ponds to keep mosquitoes down to one slap per minute rate. (We use them in our earthbox and in our now-rusting red wagon, but the mosquitoes are multiplying anyway. Then again, nothing but container garden, so it's hard to figure out where they're finding standing water.)Water will collect somewhere on the bottom-with or without drainage holes and with or without liners.

And speaking of ponds...ever consider making one into a water plant water-feature? Just an idea that you'll have to google, but it looks big enough for a little one.

Absolutely adorable, BTW.
pennyhal
12 years ago
My husband secured a pipe inside the plant's drainage hole far enough so the water would drain out and sealed it so that water could only go out the hole...small rocks at bottom of the plant and covered the opening in such a way to let the water out, but keep the soil in, not too big of a pipe or too long.

Drilled hole in the container that did not have a hole. Lined the holes up and the same size as the pipe.

Stuck the plant in the container so that the pipe would stick out the bottom and the water would go straight out to the ground. If the pipe is short enough, you don't even see it.

Hope this makes sense.

Metal containers without drain holes

Comments (5)

greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a

terrybull

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Metal containers without drain holes

Comments (5)

greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a

terrybull

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redthreaddiyOriginal Author

valentinetbear

pennyhal

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