[firstkid4me]

I live an apartment and started some little seedlings (which are doing quite well, better than I expected) and I need to transfer them to something bigger soon. Pots are freaking expensive (although yesterday I did walk along the ditch near my apartment and found NINE pots! Woot! $50 saved and picking up "trash", fun times!) and I can't just plant them anywhere, I need to have them in something (that way, hopefully, no one will mess with them!)

So, I went to Walmart and was looking at the pots thinking what a rip it was, paying 20 cents for seeds and getting bent over for the pots, so I went to get other things I needed and saw those turtle sandboxes (I think they're Little Tikes.) I remembered a friend said she hated hers, that if you left the top off cats would use it as a litter box, and if you put the top on it attracted spiders... sucks all around (and yet they still make those things!) They usually have these all over freecycle and then it hit me, maybe I could fill it with soil and transfer my plants in there? It'll be completely portable, and free. I was talking to one of Emily's preschool teachers about it and they're getting rid of one, so I wouldn't even have to deal with freecycle drama, just go pick it up at Emily's school!

My question is, do you think this would work? I have tomatoes, cucumbers, garden beans, watermelon, basil, and marigolds right now, the other seeds I have are all flowers (I didn't do any root vegetables because I knew we'd be using pots at best and that's just not good for those veggies I think.)

 

[lightheart]

Using the turtle to plant in will work, the plants will be content, might want to drill (or have someone drill) some drainage holes in the bottom if tehre are not some already.

Moving it may be an issue though, how far and how often are you planning on moving it? It will be heavy with the soil in it, even if you use the fluffy potting soil.

Something else you can do is find 5 gallon buckets, try a construction site. My neighbor, a drywaller just brought me 4 buckets tonight

He's going to bring me a couple more in the next few days.

 

[journeymom]

Trying to picture how a wide little kids' wading pool full of dirt and plants is portable?

Otherwise I think that's a nifty idea. Would it be deep enough?

 

[fancyoats]

another container i've heard of people using is those big rubbermaid tubs. you would want to drill drainage holes into any container that doesn't have them already