Rustic and Austere

Gardening on a dime?   
Want to give your garden some flare?
I DO!

    I wanted to save money and make my garden my own, which is what lead me to this project. My husband and I bought these long garden planters for our previous apartment garden. This year, we are on a different budget which has made us more resourceful and creative. After some discussion and shopping around we almost decided to skip on the expense of using our planters. Replacing the coconut liners would have cost just over $30 and we were definitely not up for spending that much. Then it hit me! What is listed on Craigslist frequently and cheap?! Used coffee bags of course!

    Yes! Now our garden was given a second chance. For $10 we bought 15 coffee bags which are now lining our planters (the extra bags might be turned into cushions for our Adirondack chairs! ). These burlap bags are made out of a jute, which is a very strong plant fiber used around the world second only to cotton. I love how affordable they are and often found decorated with colorful designs and text, adding even more flare to your yard! To top it off....they are compostable! I hope you find this project easy and fun! Let me know what you think and if it's something you could do with your family! Happy Gardening!

  Step 1: Lay bag flat on ground, fold in half and cut down middle of folded edge. 

Step 2: Line planters with bag, use both halves in each planter, making sure to have the open ends of the bag at opposite ends of the planter. This will ensure that the soil will not leak out of the ends of the planters. In this image I am am placing the second half of the bag in the planter and folding and rolling the edges of the bag over the edges of the planter.

Step 3: Add soil to lined planters. I purposely exposed the green threading and purple text because I like the color and print. When adding the soil, make sure you press the soil down so that is lightly compacted and only fill the basket about 2 inches from the top of the planters to leave room for watering. If you fill it too full, the water will spill over the edges and your plants will miss out on sustenance, not mention some soil is bound to spill over with the water!

Step 4: Plant and Enjoy! This is my favorite part of the whole experience! Many of these plants we found in packages of 6 for only 88 cents! Seriously! The catch is they are starts (very young plants), but I think it will only add to my enjoyment because I will get to watch them grow. I also chose species that would fill in large areas, so that I would get more bang for my buck. I made each planter different to add variety and texture to my garden. In this image center stage are Pink Mums, which mean a lot to my husband because they are his Mom's favorite flower.