This Kitchen Staple Is The Quickest Way To Turn Plastic Cups Into Planter Pots

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We've all been there: cleaning up after a party and realizing that we overshot how many plastic cups we'd need by a lot. Now, you've got stacks and stacks of these red solo cups and no idea what to do with them. Well, there's one simple kitchen staple that you can use to turn these plastic cups into small pots for gardening: a vegetable peeler. By making drainage holes with the peeler, easily repurpose plastic party cups in your garden. 

Plastic cups like these Amazon Basics Disposable Party Cups are the perfect size to use as small planter pots, but they lack drainage holes at the bottom. Using them as-is would cause moisture to get trapped at the bottom and could even cause roots to rot. Making small holes at the bottom of each cup with a knife is not easy, and it can cause some injuries. However, using a vegetable peeler to create drainage holes can make your life a whole lot easier, especially when working through a pack of 50.

To do this hack, simply shave off a piece of plastic from the bottom of the cup. The peeler works perfectly to create a slit, which is enough for water and moisture to get out of the pot without too much soil falling out. Simply repeat the step twice for each cup, one on each side, and you've got brand-new plastic pots to use.

Standard plastic cups hold about 16 ounces and they're about 4 to 5 inches tall. Therefore, use these DIY pots for anything you'd use a 4-inch nursery pot for. These small plastic cups are great for starting seeds for your garden on a budget, but they can also be used to propagate small cuttings from existing plants. Once plants and seedlings grow and roots start to fill the small plastic cup, transfer the plant into a bigger pot or directly into the soil. 

Small nursery pots like these are typically used for a short period of time before plants go on to bigger and better ones. That's one more reason to upcycle leftover plastic cups from home rather than spending money on buying new ones. You can reuse the cups as many times as needed. If you notice water stuck in the cup despite the slits, don't hesitate to take the vegetable peeler again and make the slits slightly bigger. You can also repeat the step to create four slits rather than two, which can be helpful if the DIY pots are not sitting completely flat and some water is getting stuck in the un-cut sides. This DIY is just one of the many ways a common kitchen item like a potato peeler can save the day.