Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Repurposed rain boots


Rain boots filled with violas. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

These boots have seen a lot of mud puddles in the 13 years or so they've been kicking around my house. I bought them on sale at Target eons ago for my eldest daughter, then passed them on to a friend. When my second daughter was born, the boots came back and were worn again through rain, sleet and snow. They held up admirably, but with the lining now disintegrated and the rubber brittle and cracked, it was time to repurpose them. And what better way than to plant them with sprightly and bright violas, the happiest flowers in the autumn garden?
Boots, new and old. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

This was a very simple project. First, I removed the remains of the lining inside of the boots, then my husband drilled four drainage holes in the bottom of each boot. I then placed a nail in the bottom of the boot, in order to anchor it in the garden bed. Genius, right?

Boot with nail. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books
From that point on, it was very straightforward: boots anchored in the bed of creeping thyme, filled with potting soil and violas, then watered.

Rain boots. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books
I expect the violas to last for a few months, then in the spring we'll try something new ~ petunias or impatiens or daisies, perhaps. I hope you give this project a try. Let me know your results!

Text and images copyright 2013, Lucy Mercer.

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