How to Reuse Plastic Milk Jugs for Home and Garden

We've all heard the phrase reduce, reuse and recycle. Here are a few ideas to reuse something almost all of us have and save some money while you're at it.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Clean, empty milk jugs
• various supplies for desired projects

1. Take your empty milk jugs and wash them out with hot soapy water. Set out to dry.

2. Use in the garden
   -Start your own plants. Cut the tops off fill with seed starting mix and use to get a head start with fruits, vegetables and flowers and save money by growing your own.
   -Make a hanging planter. Cut small holes about two inches in diameter several places around the jug but not the handle. Use as you would a strawberry pot, planting in the holes and filling with soil as you go. Then hang by the handle or simply set someplace sunny to grow. The growing plants will soon cover the jug. Small plants like herbs and lettuce do very well this way. You can also grow larger plants with one larger hole in the top but be careful because the weight of the things like vegetables heavy with fruits could rip the plastic.
   -Use a cloches/plant covers. Cut the bottom off a jug (or use the tops you cut off to start your plants) and put over young plants to protect from cold. Make sure to remove the cap to prevent the plants from cooking inside.

3. Use for the holidays
   -Holiday baskets. Cut a hole in the side of a jug to make a basket. Have children decorate them as Easter baskets, mailboxes for Valentines Day, Halloween trick-or-treat buckets or a new kind of stocking for Christmas goodies. Use your imagination and have your kids use theirs and you will have a fun holiday activity for everybody.
   -Luminaries. Cut a small flap in the side of the jug that will open and close to put in and take out your candle or other light. Decorate the outside as desired with holes for light to penetrate. Fill bottom of jug with a few inches of sand or kitty litter to weigh it down and hold your light source. Lit up, set out and enjoy.
   -Make ornaments. Cut out shapes from the plastic and punch a hole for the hanger. Decorate and hang.

4. Use as bulk food storage
   Ever wanted to buy the big 25 lb bag of flour or sugar but didn't because you had no place to put it. Try this out.
   -Wash out jugs well with hot soapy water. Let dry completely! Use a funnel or make one of your your with a two liter pop bottle (smaller neck makes fitting in jug neck easier) or cut the bottom off another jug and tape together to keep from spilling. Fill jug with your bulk product, Flour, sugar, rice, small noodles, dog food, oats, grains or anything else you want to try. The nice thing about this is that the dry goods will keep for a long time and you can store them anywhere you have room for a jug. Pantry or cupboards, closet shelves, under bed, ect. Good luck!

Tips & Warnings

• Put your scrap pieces of cut plastics in the recycle bin.
• When you are done with your reuse wash them out and put in recycle bin.
• Most of these can be done on a smaller scale with milk cartons too.
• Make sure to clean your jugs well.

[psychonurse]

on 5/17/2009 Very GREEN and useful article. *****

[auntkitty]

on 3/6/2009 This is great. I never tried storing dry food in them.

[dtwelloh]

on 2/15/2009 Some excellent ideas here. Well written as well. 5*