The Brilliant Reason Plant Lovers Should Be Collecting Second-Hand Coffee Pots

If your "Ol' Reliable" coffee maker has given up on you, or you decided to upgrade, don't throw it out just yet. You can give the coffee pot a second life as a nifty DIY garden project. Coffee pots are just the right size to turn into a terrarium for small plants like air plants and moss. Just line the bottom with gravel, sand, or soil, then add plants to your heart's content. You can include decorative items like rocks or twigs to give it the aesthetic you want. When you're done, place it by a window or under a grow light to give the plants what they need.

This project is ideal for plants that don't need a lot of light, water, or room. You're not limited to air plants, which require very little moisture, but you should avoid plants that require more than a coffee pot can offer. Limited sunlight will be able to reach the plants, and there aren't any drainage holes for excess water to escape. Fast-growing plants physically won't be a good fit once they start growing out of the pot. You'll want to become a terrarium barista once you find the right terrarium plants to fit your coffee pot; some ideas include peperomia, baby's tears, and the strawberry begonia.

There's more than one way to turn a coffee pot into a terrarium, and the kind of pot you have can affect how you execute the project. The average coffee pot (think Mr. Coffee) is glass with a solid handle and lid. This type will allow you plenty of space for sunlight to come in, giving you lots of plant options, but you will have to work around the solid parts and consider removing the lid for more light. A solid glass pot will work wonders since you won't have to deal with any sunlight blind spots. Solid stainless steel coffee pots won't work as a terrarium container, but you could still fill it with soil and plant something that can cascade over the sides.

A coffee pot terrarium is a unique piece of decor that will be a talking point for all your guests. Consider this when you pick a location. You can have it sitting with your other plants as the odd one out, or tie it into your kitchen or coffee bar decor. It is a coffee pot, after all! If you want to go the extra mile, find a way to turn the entire old coffee maker into part of the terrarium or turn the coffee pot on its side to create a plant-spilling effect. You'll need another container or planter for the latter, but it would make for a cute decorative piece in the kitchen.