BBC HomeExplore the BBC

11 July 2009
Accessibility help
Text only

BBC Homepage
Contact Us

Like this page?
Send it to a friend!
 

Plastic pots

The plastic plant pot is the gardener's equivalent to the shopper’s plastic carrier bag: we know we use too many of them - some 500 million each year in the UK - but they’re really cheap and they’re handy. The only trouble is that like carrier bags, they have become a huge waste problem: they pile up, in our gardens, in our bins, and the majority of them are either sent to landfill or incinerated. And the manufacture of virgin plastic uses significant amounts of fossil fuels (four per cent of the world's annual oil production is used to produce plastics and a further three per cent to manufacture them).

An obvious alternative is to recycle them, not just by giving your surplus to neighbours or a local community project, but by being able to take them back to be recycled commercially, ideally to be made into more pots. Until recently, the argument against recycling on a large scale has been that it's too complex and costly to sort the mixed plastics. But now the majority of plant pots are made from polypropylene, with trays made from polystyrene, and advanced technology means that mechanical sorting is feasible. However, Steve Griggs of Associated Polymer Resources points out that the specialized machinery is very expensive.

The challenge for gardeners is to persuade garden centres and nurseries to take back used pots - this will entail them providing staff to sort, stack and shrinkwrap them - and set up a collection scheme with one of the country's specialist plastic recyclers who can clean and granulate the plastic so that it can be re-used. Some enterprising independent garden centres, such as Groves in Bridport, have already set up schemes, and this summer Wyevale will have collection bins at all its 121 garden centres.

Using degradable plastic - plastic which has been treated with an accelerant so that it will degrade when finished with - throws up problems of emissions and the length of time it takes to break down. And, according to Friends of the Earth, does nothing to promote lasting solutions to plastic waste.

Biodegradable pots, made from a range of materials such as coir, wood chips, rice husks, miscanthus or seaweed, are becoming increasingly popular, especially with organic gardeners. There are two types: ones that last a few months and can be planted straight into the soil, where they gradually break down and add humus to the soil; and more rigid ones made from plant materials such as rice husks and latex which last up to three years and can be put on your home compost heap to degrade. Berryfields head gardener, Alys Fowler, has tried both kinds and found the miscanthus-based ones fell apart too quickly. She is now successfully using the rigid ones which can be washed and re-used, but will break, she warns, if you drop them on the ground.

Caroline and Derek Taylor of the Hairy Pot Plant Company have recently switched to coir pots, which they describe as 'rustic looking', having trialled several other kinds for three years. The roots establish quickly and once they push through the sides of the pots are air pruned, which encourages them to branch more inside the pot. This avoids rootballing and creates a well-developed root system that enables the young plants to romp away, with no disturbance, as soon as they are planted out in their pots. Organic grower Mike Kitchen of Rocket Gardens has had similar success with compressed wood fibre pots from France, the largest of which, he says, can last for up to a year before degrading.

Both these kinds of biodegradable pots dry out more quickly than ordinary plastic pots, and need to be handled more carefully. Except for the ones you make yourself from newspaper, biodegradable pots are also more expensive and their manufacture has a carbon footprint. In the case of coir, which is mainly sourced from Sri Lanka, there's the extra transport costs, although very little energy is used in their manufacture as the coir is dried by the sun for most of the year. But as coir importer Joe Collinson explains: 'We should consider the social costs of what we're using too. In this case, the pots, which are finished by hand, provide a livelihood for communities hit by the tsunami.'

Did you know?

  • Each UK household produces over 1 tonne of rubbish annually.
  • The average net saving of CO2 from recycling plastics is estimated to be between 1 tonne and 1.5 tonnes CO2 equivalent per tonne of plastics.
  • Worldwide, we produce and use 20 times more plastic today than we did 50 years ago.
  • Plastics make up around seven per cent of the average household dustbin in the UK.
  • Nearly 57 per cent of litter found on our beaches in 2003 was plastic.

Viewpoint

Alan Knight, Sustainability Director, Wyevale. "Recycling plant pots is a low carbon form of recycling as the material has already been manufactured and you're making use of lorries that would normally be returning empty to the growers. If we simplify the kinds of plastics we offer in our garden centres, it will make the recycling process even easier."

Caroline Taylor, The Hairy Pot Plant Company. "Coir pots provide valuable employment in an under-developed area of Sri Lanka and work brilliantly as a pot. Last year we grew 20,000 plants in them. You plant the whole thing in the ground so avoiding waste and giving the plant a great start in life."

David Gwyther, The Horticultural Trades Association Director General. "The industry has long been very conscious of the environmental challenge caused by used plastic pots, and has for many years been seeking both alternative materials and cost-effective collection and recycling schemes. There are no quick fixes to this problem. It continues to require diligent development and trial work. HTA is monitoring these activities and running its own investigative schemes. Current industry projects include a SEEDA funded waste reduction and recycling project, and recycling experiments by Hilliers and Bransford Plants. We are pleased that Wyevale too is running a pilot recycling scheme. Though we have no details of this at present, we would hope that it would add to the industry's developing knowledge on how to come up with real solutions to the problem."

What you can do

  • Take any unwanted plastic pots to a garden centre that offers a recycling service. If your nearest centre doesn't offer one, suggest the idea to them.
  • If you want to buy plastic pots (with or without plants in them) choose ones that are made from recycled plastic (such as Plantpak).
  • Make your own seed pots from newspaper. Use cardboard tubes for seedlings that put out long roots, eg sweetpeas.
  • Experiment with biodegradable pots, both ones that you can plant directly into the soil and ones which can be used over longer periods and that can eventually be put on the compost heap.
Back to top

Have your say

  • "A local garden centre in Lasswade launched a pot recycling service about a month ago. They also offer these plant pots to local primary schools in the area."

    Rachel Goddard, Edinburgh

  • "I'm all for recycling existing pots, but let's not sustain the demand for ever more plastic pots. If some garden centres and nurseries can't give us a green alternative, let's go elsewhere."

    Anna M, Alcester

  • "This year I'm mostly using toilet rolls for sowing then planting out."

    Anon, Nottingham

  • "I'm using 3" plastic pots I bought at least 15 years ago to bring on most of my veg. They are still going strong and I think they will last me a few more years. "

    Dave Edwards, Abertillery, S/Wales

  • "I use my plastic pots again and again for all the purposes suggested by others. However, when they are no longer fit for use, I wash them out and put them in the 'plastics' recycling bin issued by the local council, as far as I know there is no rule that says this is not allowed. I also cut up yogurt pots to use for plant labels."

    Anon, Liverpool

  • "Remember the order of doing things - "reduce, re-use, recycle" - in that order. Re-using, even just once or twice, has a huge impact, where as re-cycleing takes a lot of energy (so generates CO2.)"

    Richard, Herts

  • "As usual with environmental matters, it's not the user that's the problem it's the manufacturers. The plants I buy from garden centres are in pots that clutter up my shed."

    linda, Chesterfield

  • "I make my own pots from Tetrapak drinks cartons. They are hard to recycle and using them as containers helps to break them down and they last about 2 years. Peel the top wide open and make several holes in the bottom with a stanley knife. Being square they stand closer together than round plant pots and you get good deep root growth in them because they are 8 to 10 inches deep. To get the plant out just tear the container off. I use them a lot to grow trees from seed with great success."

    Roger Parkinson, Wakefield

  • "I run the school PTA's annual plant sale in May - this year we sold over 800 plants and we regularly ask all our staff and parents to sort out their sheds and send in their empty pots for us to reuse. Why not see if your local school has a gardening club or something similar? "

    Jacqui, Leamington Spa

  • "I always reuse all of my pots. I have been keeeping pots for 6 years,too many to keep any more. Many thanks for your new idea."

    Bhorani, Leicester

  • "I live in France, cannot get plastic pots! Only a variety of clay or very limited sizes of recycle pots. "

    C Carter , Mayenne, France

  • "I reuse mine. I have a good few empty in my shed but they are there when I want to plant something new, Why throw them away??"

    Mike, Wales

  • "How do you make plant pots using newspaper?"

    Anne, Garforth

  • "Try Plantcycle.org or cnyplantcycle Its a start. They try to encourage local groups to recycle pots on a bigger scale. I wish they would recycle more wooden pallets too."

    Cherrie B, Syracuse NY

  • " Thanks for the info. I shall be visiting Wyvale with my surplus plastic pots. I do use cardboard tubes and have a nice supply of clays which are the best for plants anyway."

    Joan Allum, Wokingham

  • "I re-use my plastic pots for cuttings/seeds and also for keeping established plants to fill up any vacant spots in my borders. I use them at various stages of re-potting and keep them upside down to raise the other established pots. However, a garden centre that recycles these pots would be ideal! "

    Elizabeth, Wokingham, Berks

  • "Our pots here in the States are all recycled by our town. However, I keep many of the pots to start my spring seeds then intermingle the pots amongst perennials that have bloomed out."

    Eileen, Long Island, New York

  • "I only throw my plastic pots away when they are damaged; a recycling garden centre would be ideal to save the planet! I re-use the pots for my cuttings/seeds/ various stages of re-potting. I also use it upside down as a stand for the other pots. "

    Elizabeth, Wokingham, Berks

  • "Our local Wyevale Garden Centre near Tarporley has a collection point for used plastic pots."

    Marilyn Hopwood, Kelsall

  • "I never have enough pots/trays. Friends bring me their spare pots. They are happy to get free plants in return. I wash and re-use them to plant seeds, new plants, cuttings, plants from thinning and established plants. It makes me feel happy too. I even save my yoghurt and similar cups, plastic trays used in packaging veg, meats etc. and never have enough pots. I would love it if there were garden centers near me that recycled pots for people to help themselves from. "

    Mamta, Bedfordshire

  • "There are two separate issues here - we need to use, re-use and finally re-cycle the plastic we already have - and then avoid creating a demand for any further plastic by using locally sourced, recyclable waste material such as newspaper. Can be done at home - can it be done commercially too?"

    Mrs Plot 6, Cheshire

  • "I have about 200 pots in all shapes and sizes. Please advise of anyone who could use them."

    Anon, Coulsdon, Surrey

  • "I share pots with my allotment neighbours. We never need to buy any, we simply wash & reuse. Any surplus is left at the site, and others can help themselves. I make my own pots for beans, peas & sweetcorn from toilet rolls & newspaper."

    Two_Sheds, Norfolk

  • "I have turned them upside down - put stone slabs on them and now have somewhere to display my Bonsai - have also repeated this elsewhere in the garden with more upside pots on top of the stone slabs - I can now dislay 3 "layers" of window boxes!"

    Jan, Hampton Hill

  • "I am very lucky and have 2 garden centres nearby that have recyling boxes for both plastic pots and trays. "

    Pat Harris, Walsall, West Midlands

  • "A small independent garden centre at Starcross in Devon offers a pot exchange. If you want pots from it a charity contribution is suggested. As this is for the Lifeboats I was delighted to contribute and obtain some long tom plastic pots, impossible to find to buy in garden centres! Excellent!!"

    Anne Blythe, Croydon

  • "Try Freecycle. There is normally someone who wants your excess pots. Use them on bean sticks to hold netting up."

    Amber, Kendal

  • "Woulty it not be possible to grind down plastic and reuse it in soil to improve drainage?"

    Chris Bellamacina, Barnsley South , Yorkshire

  • "I re-use mine for cuttings/seeds, many of which I seem to give away, so often seem close to running out of pots."

    Catherine S, Hampshire

  • "Should we not discourage the use of all plastic in gardens etc? A Parish Council in Devon has refused an allotment-holder permission to erect a polytunnel on one of his plots and is getting a lot of stick which I think is unfair. "

    John Harvey, Caterham

  • "Whilst I agree they are like carrier bags, they are used more than once too, well mine are at least. I agree though that more should be done to recycle them. Garden centres could have bins that people could deposit their old ones for others to reuse."

    Ewan, Livingston

  • "I keep all of mine, as they come in handy. Painting or spraying them with various textures can make them lovely as display pots in a garden. Try mixing some sand in with gloss paint to create a terracotta effect. Reusing has even less carbon footprint that recycling."

    Lee, Carlisle

  • "Keep them and save money - reuse them every year."

    julian , ilford

  • "Never had a pot i did not need :)"

    grower, london

  • "I belong to a group of friends who recycle our pots between ourselves. It's cost effective too."

    Jill Jones, Caldicot Monmouthshire

  • "I reuse all my pots in one way or another. I also use them for birdfeeders and nests for insects."

    Zoe, Southport

  • "I reuse all my plastic pots and have been doing this for as long as I have been gardening (50years). Some of my pots are 12 years old"

    e m hodges, kelso, scotland

  • "I reuse all of mine to grow & pot on my seeds, sometimes I even run out. My local garden centre recycles them as well."

    Alison Toner, Northampton

  • "I cannot find a garden centre near me that does recycling. In the meantime I am storing mine but use some of them to half-fill large plant pots-it saves on compost and the weight of the finished pot."

    Mrs Helen Patterson, Edinburgh

Discuss this further on the message boards



About the BBC | Help | Terms of Use | Privacy & Cookies Policy