i cut the bottom of 5gal buckets and put them around my tomato plants in the garden twisting them about 2 to3inches
into the soil. this takes care of wind problems and pests.
i take them off when the plants start coming out the top and
put on the cages
Ron

I use one to catch the "tea" from my worm bin (I have the Can O' Worms, which works fine for just us two). I use one to hold the kitchen scraps for the worms. I have 5 gal bucket that I keep my hand tools in.

soak bare root plants. drag tools around the yard. turn 'em upside down and take a break!

Oh, goodness. What would we do without these?
wash plant roots in 'em for shipping plants.
wash all my old pots in them before I refill them.
tote them around and put weeds you pull in 'em.
ariate the chlorine from the water for your housplants
keep your kitten happy while you garden and it hops in
and out of the bucket over and over again...

GGG

Cut 2" holes around the outside and drain holes in the bottom and turn it into a strawberry planter. Store bulk ferts. like molasses, alfalfa and cottonseed meal 'cause the paper bags they come in from the feed store rot pretty quick.

Keep one next to the fireplace filled with split kindling, small stuff that I don't want in the copper boiler with the split wood. Also, I use them to store - bird seed, cat food, dog food.
Judy

Very interesting picture at the first follow-up in the link below to the gardenweb experiments forum.

Here is a link that might be useful: upside-down plants

Ooh! Ooh! I just found a blue 5-gallon bucket at the side of the road the other week! Was I happy. :) I have a smaller bucket I use to hold weeds--handy for carrying with you in tight spaces and then emptying as needed into a bigger bin--but it will be nice to use this larger one for the same purpose.

I also use it as a stool and as a tool caddy. But my favorite use yet is as a "mixing bowl" for my own potting soil (I don't buy it premade). The bucket makes it tidy and the excess soil can stay in there until I need it again. I also wet my soil before planting and the bucket is high and wide enough that I can easily do that too, without spilling over the edges. It's also big enough that I can make up a good amount ONCE and then use it as I go.

Monica

This keeps those stupid extension cords neat. Make a hole to stick the plug in thru and coil the rest so you can pull out what you need. You can plug in additional cords too to make it longer. I love this no more tangled cords that you have to unwind to use.

We have a cat, so we get kitty litter in jugs that hold a bit over 2 gallons. But the bigger buckets, which are square, hold about 4 gallons. I'm going to try to switch us over to those.

I painted a few, removed the handles, and stuck them around the back yard with water or bog plants in them.

I was looking around my work area and saw that I have 2 of the white pickle-bucket type buckets, but they were used for dishwashing liquid at the nursing home where I used to work. This liquid was concentrated levels, so I'll have to really clean these out good if I use them for veggies.

But, I had forgot about them since I was using them for a shelf------I put a board, for a table top, on top of the two buckets----instant work table. And I had a plastic tabelcloth on top of them. My wafer board rotted after a year of being out in the weather. It was going to the trash anyway, or being used for firewood, so it didn't cost me anything.

If you need an extra table, use 2 pickle buckets and a board!

To soak compost and make compost tea.

To soak compost and make compost tea.

My family owned a bakery so my dad cut out the bottoms and I use them over winter pansies or other new perennials that might need extra attention. Also use ones with the bottoms still in for weeds, mixing, etc. One of the bottomless ones currently has a galvinized garbage can lid on top and makes a great bird bath - just a few minutes ago, Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal were taking their Saturday nite bath. piegirl

cracked ones or with holes are def. for planting, use them to transport dirt, sawdust, tools, animal feed & water (gotta love my ducks/geese/guineas/chickens/ rabbits, also my neighbor makes laying nests out of them, great for gathering seeds in bulk (blanket flowers, etc), also use to gather cut flowers in them with a little water can cut flowers and stick in the bucket as I go around, also use for my gardening tools and a handy seat when outside
....if only I could keep them away from that DH of mine who keeps using them for his tools and whatnots!

I use the big commercial spackle buckets when I'm weeding. Just fill them up and have the kids dump them. Also I'm going to try a worm bin this year.

I love them for hauling things around, esp. compost and mulch in those areas where the wheelbarrow would be overkill. I line my trunk with them and go to the city compost facility when I don't have a truck and need just a little for some new plantings. Of course carry one around to throw weeds into.

I always take one with me when I'm planting something. I pull the mulch back, dig a hole and temporarily place the dirt in the bucket. Then I can mix the dirt with compost in the bucket and backfill the planting hole.

If I have something that needs watering way out back, and don't want to mess with hooking up several hoses to make it there, I just fill the bucket with water and carry it back there. Holds much more than my largest watering can, so I only need to make one trip.

I use the buckets for just about everything already mentioned. I cut the bottoms from the buckets and dig holes in my beds where I want plants that stray too far. I bury the buckets so that only about 2 inches is above ground and then add my soil and plant. I use pinestraw as mulch and it covers the top of the buckets so they barely show. It works great for my cannas and Jerusalem Artichokes.

What DON'T I use them for? I've set some aside for water changes in the fish tank, others are used for housecleaning and still others hold birdseed. I've also got some that hold excess soil. The possibilities are endless!

So many uses =) Hubby and I both have our own buckets, we keep them seperate cuz his get icky ;) Heres what we use ours for...

DH's buckets
Sawhorses (sometimes he uses mine by mistake, so the edges are a little cut up on mine!)
Mixing small batches of cement
Hauling kennel scrapings to the 'pooh pile' (I told you they get icky!)
Temporary trash cans

MY buckets
One outside the back door for holding kitchen sraps, I haul it out to the compost pile about once a week
Weeding- I carry one along while I weed, then I can make fewer trips to the compost pile
Mixing up home made potting soil and storing potting mix
Compost tea
Garden tool caddy
Hauling small amounts of compost
Harvesting veggies
etc, etc, etc !

I made a water reservoir for my greenhouse out of one by drilling a hole in the side of the bucket just above the bottom and siliconed some clear plastic tubing in to seal it. I fill it with water and put the lid on, and when potted plants inside the greenhouse need watered, I put them in an old sink that has a hose that drains to the outside, and i water my plants. It is a good substitute for running water in the greenhouse.

Pee in it while out working in the garden and dump it on the compost pile! LOL!

I know it's frugal GARDENING, but I belong to an organization where we use it for our car washes! Put some soap in the bucket, add water, throw the sponges in there, you're set... next car, please.

I made a flower gathering bucket by cutting a circle of chicken wire a bit larger than the bucket. While wearing gloves I turned down the edges so it would fit tightly inside the bucket. Pushed it down about half way. Put in about 10" of water and went out to cut flowers. Works great! The chicken wire will hold my flowers erect so the stems don't break or let the flowers slip under the water and get soggy. I keep a couple buckets ready at all times.
TrowelGal

I have a bunch, they are so versatile.

The nastiest one -I drilled two small holes in the bottom.
I fill it up and place it somewhere that needs slow soaking.
Works just fine.

I used to make a childs' seat . The top of the bucket was cut down to leave a back for the chair and a didk was cut from wood for the seat I padded the seat . the child was able to carry this around everywhere by the handle and under the disk seat he could store his toys and put the seat down and sit to watch tv or play. Then I either painted it or the child di and decorated it with stickers.

Well, I use them the same way everyone else does evidently. I also carry a couple with me in my van. Never know what you might come across in your travels. Last weekend I was at a friend of a friend's camp and she sent me home with a nice clump of grass growing by the creek for my pond. (She has oodles of it) and some great rocks to border my path. I also carry a small shovel in one.

I've also used them to put the kids muddy clothes and shoes in so the van doesn't get trashed. Ice bucket to hold the icecream I got a great deal on when kinda far from home.

I have come across a problem though and thought maybe someone here would have an idea.

My eggplant were very slow in germinating and now are extremely slow growers. I may as well not even transplant them into the garden because the season is too short now for them.

I was considering planting them in buckets and putting them in the greenhouse ~ it will be warmer in there in the fall and early winter ~ possibly I can still get some eggplant. Anyway ~ does anyone know how I could make a self-watering container out of them for these plants? I don't use the greenhouse for much more than storage these days and I'm afraid I'll forget about them.

Was just 'browing' at the dump last weekend and found over 30 5 gal buckets which had had asphalt sealer in them. All had been rinsed. I got 10, cut the bottoms off 8 and stacked the bottomless ones in the ones I left the bottom on, ran a screw through the top one into the side of my shed and presto great organizers for long handled tools (I lined up all the handles and like the look). The cut off botoms also gave me 8 nice new big black drip saucers (left 2" lip).......all for free!

Punch holes in the bottom and plant brugs in them.

I cut about 3" up from the bottom and then use for stepping stone molds.

i too love these!!!!

we rescued 40 from the garbage. all clean and everything.
use them for all kinds of stuff already mentioned.

but, i have a question. have you seen the inserts you can buy for a 5 gallon pail? i think they call them pail caddy? anyway, they are full of pockets on the outside and inside for better organization of tools. my question is, does anyone have a pattern to make your own?

i have one other idea that i am planning to do with 4 buckets. i am going to sew skirts and cushion tops to make nice looking seats. i am struggling for small nice looking seating in my back yard. and these would make the perfect little campfire seats. i may even hinge the tops so i can store kindling & whatnot inside of them. i plan to use waterproof,weatherproof material from the tent & awning store. only problem is im not sure when i will actually get it done.

I use mine to as containers and to elevate my containers so they get a better chance at the sun from my north-facing balcony.

For all you soccer moms out there:

Throw the cleats and water bottle inside and add a round garden type pillow (or fundraiser sit-upon) to the lid and you have the perfect sideline chair/sports caddy. The Oregon University ultimate (frisbee) team makes sideline caddies for all their players.

They work well for any sport (swimming, soccer etc.) and it's nice to have a chair instead of standing or sitting on the ground.

The Duluth trading company makes the "Bucket Boss", which sounds very much like the pail caddy.

I use bird seed and kitty litter buckets for most of the things mentioned by all of you plus you have given me new ideas. I also use mine for catching rain water that comes off of our roof. We don't have gutters so it just comes off the roof overhang. I put the buckets there and catch rain then use it to water my plants, esp. the potted plants.

I have an equal amount of 3 and 5 gallon buckets. I use them for taking a "premeasured" amount of leaves out to the compost heaps. Storing compost is another invaluable use for my buckets and many other uses. My goal this year is to find some black buckets and plant my spring potatoes. Any ideas where to find this special bucket?

Black buckets? Could you use 5-gallon plastic pots?

You grow potatoes in buckets? I'd like to know more about that.

Hello Everyone, been lurking for a while. I have 2, 55gal fish tanks which I have to change a third of the water in a couple times a week. A short plastic hose pulls water out of tank into (guess what) a 5gal bucket to water my hanging plants in the back yard and all of my plants in the front yard. Works great for scrap wood in the workshop too.

Socks:
I've heard that you can grow potatoes in a bucket, but it has to be black to not allow any light to the spuds. So I will be attempting to grow potatoes this year in a bucket. Also heard that growing above ground makes harvesting a breeze.

In addition to the many uses listed above, I have a few more, some of them related to the animal adjuncts to gardening:

Put a hot water bottle in the bottom of the bucket and cover it with a towel. You now have an emergency carrier for newborn lambs, kids, kittens, puppies, and all other small creatures. Cover them with another towel or blanket and they'll stay cozy while you work. Having them in the bucket means you have your hands free to hold flashlights and open gates. Extra handling is eliminated and there isn't such a large risk of dropping the youngster(s) as there would be if you carried them in your arms.

Put an inch of sand in the bottom. Set up a heat lamp and you have a nursery for chicks, ducklings, rabbits. Punch holes in a lid for a cover that eliminates escapes. You can keep the babies in the bathroom where it's warm without finding strays in the kitchen in the morning.

Put an inch of sand in the bottom and add a couple of inches of water and you have a swimming pool for ducklings. I am NOT cleaning the duck poo out of the bathtub again.

Fill with sand/rocks/water and put on lids to make stands and playground equipment for the goats.

Use as a container for aquatic plants you're putting in a pond. The bale makes for easier lifting.

Cut out the bottom and make a 'basket' for nerf basketball.

Set upright and filled with rocks, dirt and straw and partially sunk, they make nesting boxes for ducks.

Nailed horizontally and filled with straw, they make nesting boxes for chickens.

Fill with sand and put in the back of a vehicle to give it additional weight or use the sand to give traction on ice or snow.

Make manure tea. A lid is a wonderful thing.

Set a flower pot inside and the bucket will help stabilize it while you're driving to deliver a plant to a friend. And even if the plant does turn over, the dirt and water won't go into the carpet.

Punch holes in the lid of a bucket and use it as a car carrier for rabbits, puppies, and any other small creature you don't have a regular transport crate for.

Ray

I love these buckets! I've also used them for planting as Sandi W said...I call them bucket pockets...I use them in areas where I don't want any maintenance (a gravel bed), cut them in half, spray paint to match gravel color, bury them so that the lip is above ground, add compost, and plant. The lip sticking up keeps the gravel out of the plants...my 84 year old mother loves the ones I did for her. I use a thick layer of newspaper under the gravel to deter weeds...and use the bottom of the bucket to hold plants I put in nursery beds to mature in.

I also make "weeping rock" water features using them. Dig a hole and put bucket in ground so that lip of bucket is at ground level..fill in dirt, keeping inside of bucket clean. Add a pond pump inside, leaving about 6 inches of hose above ground.Place a piece of pond liner, or very heavy plastic(must be flexible) with a 3 inch hole cut in the center-over the bucket, extending about about 8-12 inches beyond bucket, pulling hose up through center hole. Lay an old refridgerator rack, or the rack off an old round bbq grill over the rubber..making sure the rack is larger than the bucket!, again pulling up hose through grill. Lay/stack rocks that will not fall through grill to cover grill and surrounding pond liner, and mounding a few to cover and hold up hose..cut hose off so it doesn't show above rocks..pour water in, plug in pump and turn on...water just girgles up and splashes around rocks, back into bucket (liner sags at hole and lets water run back in) and up again. Cover cord with mulch or more rocks. Lovely sound, good in a shady area, and easy to maintain..just be sure to add water regularly so it does not dry out. Toads love it, birds love it, I love it!
Woodsy

They are great to use for weeding, easier to carry then a big garbage bag,and since I have many (they were filled with cat litter)I fill my garden cart, then pull it to the big garbage dumpster and dump them. I not only save money from having to buy garbage bags, but keep them from help filling up the landfill.

Kendal

This is an old thread, but I did a search for potatoes in buckets and this came up!
I thought I could cut the bottom out of the buckets, or maybe just drill drain holes, plant potatoes, cover with some soil, and keep adding soil as the plants grow until the bucket is full, and then just wait to harvest.
Any thoughts?
(oh boy, I hope someone knows if this would work)
Thanks so much!