I started this thrifty project with an attempt to see how growing herbs indoors would work. Creating an indoor herb planter seemed like an easy enough task, and to my delight, I was right.
As a usually thrifty person, I didn’t want to make it a big project and I didn’t want to spend too much money on it, so I gathered most things I had in my apartment at my disposal. I’m a bottled water drinker, however bad for the environment it may be, it helps me drink more water and stay healthy, but, at least I recycle the bottles. I had my usual recycle bin full of empty water bottles and I figured I could easily cut these and use them as small pots for growing flowers and herbs. I also had an old Coca-Cola crate that I had bought a few months ago and hadn’t used, and it was the perfect thing for placing the recycled plastic pots in. After a bit of soil, some water, and sunlight, I had life right in my windowsill! You’re not limited to a wooden Coca-Cola crate, but you can use a multitude of other things as thrifty indoor herb planters.

To see my other thrifty projects, visit NiftyThrifter

Step 1: What Do You Need?

What did I use to make the indoor herb planter? Here’s a list of supplies that I used. You can tailor this list to your livestyle and financial needs.

-24 empty water bottles, which happens to be the exact amount that comes in the packs which costs $2.49 at Wal-Mart,
-Coca-Cola crate which I picked up for $7.00 at an estate sale, you can find these a bit pricier on craigslist or use something different,
-A pair of scissors – I had a pair that I’ve had since middle school
-A few packets of seeds which cost around $1.00 each or less. I used about four packets of Cilantro, a packet of Cacti seeds, and some Morning Glory seeds
-A bag of soil which can be found for under $5.00,
-Water, which you can get for mere pennies,
-Sunlight, which is FREE.
-Total cost for this project if you don’t have any supplies would be just under $20. A pretty low price for a thrifty person if you know where to shop.

Step 2: What Now?

The steps to making your indoor herb planter are easy to follow!

-Gather your supplies
-Cut the bottom of each water bottle, about 2 inches from the bottom
-Fill your new plastic pot with soil about halfway
-Push a few seeds into the soil
-Top the pot off with a sprinkle of more soil on top of the seeds
-Water the soil
-Place in crate
-Place crate near light source
-Wait and water the plants once the soil gets a bit dry on the surface
-Wait some more
-Wait a little bit longer
-Watch your seeds sprout!

Once your seeds sprout you just have to continue to water them and provide them with sunlight. The plant on the top photo is Cilantro, and the bottom photo are Basil.

Step 3: ...and Now You Wait

After a few weeks your plants should be growing, and will make your crate look less bare. Not only does this look good in your windowsill by adding a vintage style to your room or apartment, but eventually you’ll be rewarded with some tasty herbs. Depending on what you planted, you want to make sure they don’t need excessive outdoor lighting.

After a while your planter-crate will start looking really nice and will look like a mini-jungle sitting in your windowsill.

Step 4: What to Do With Your Indoor Herb Planter Once Your Done?

And after a while you’ll notice your plants getting bigger and bigger. You can make this project even more sustainable by using more environmentally friendly products, by using organically grown seeds, and by thinking of different ways and things to grow the plants in. Once you are done with growing in this indoor herb planter, try growing more herbs.

What to do now?

Well, if you grew herbs then you can tear the leaves off and add them to your favorite dish, if you grew flowers you can transfer them to larger pots or even transplant them outside. Enjoy your thrifty indoor herb planter!

To see my other thrifty projects, visit NiftyThrifter