Why Pinecones Are A Smart Addition To Flowerpots And Planters

Planters and flowerpots grace our yards, patios, and balconies with color and pleasing scents. The beautiful plants are the stars of the show, but the planters — and their contents — are doing all the work. Naturally, plants need soil to grow, but most planters have more volume available than your plants will need. Packed soil at the bottom of planters can sometimes retain excess moisture, which might lead to waterlogged roots and even plant diseases. That extra dirt and moisture also weigh a lot making the planters harder to move.

Replacing that lower level of soil with items that take up space, but are much lighter than dirt, can be an option. Plastic bottles, bubble wrap, and chopped up pool noodles are regularly used for that purpose. But with microplastic pollution potentially leaching unhealthy chemicals into the soil, many find using plastic products for gardening problematic. Enter the pinecone: Perfect for aiding drainage and lightening the pot or planter without plastics, all in one piney package. Making planters lighter helps you move larger planters with ease, also.

Nearly any pinecone from a coniferous tree will do, as long as the ones you collect are not rotten. Large pinecones will take up more space with fewer pinecones. Spruce, fir, true pines, larch, and others shed their cones regularly, providing an ongoing, sustainable supply.