Are you a recycle and upcycle freak? Then you must have thought about making a garden out of waste. After all, you can turn trash into a pretty thing. If you have already tried to upcycle trash into a garden and are looking for more ideas to add to your collection, a kiddie pool garden can work out fine.
You must be familiar with what a kiddie pool is, especially if you have kids back home. However, your kids might be done playing in their tiny pool, and you might be thinking of discarding it. But, wait there! A kiddie pool has enough space to accommodate several plants and gives a perfect space to grow your collection.
There are numerous perks associated with making a kiddie pool garden. A kiddie pool garden can be a group project with lots of fun and adventure for your family. You can even involve kids and provide them good space to challenge their ideas. So a mere kid’s toy can harbor the garden of your dreams.
Creative Kiddie Pool Garden Ideas
A kiddie pool garden comes with numerous benefits. It lets you grow your food in a tiny space as you can create a garden bed. And what will excite you more than a movable garden? You can move your kiddie pool garden as per the weather conditions and your convenience. So why not get started with this fantastic idea of a kiddie pool garden?
But, you need not think much or scroll through the browser for hours as we have covered you. So all you need is a kiddie pool and a good collection of plants to grow. Here is everything you need to know (with pictures) about converting a kiddie pool into a beautiful garden.
1. Choosing a Location for Your Kiddie Pool Garden
Choosing a suitable location is essential for your kiddie pool garden to grow and flourish in a better way. It could be a bit tricky for you to choose a perfect location. However, a sunny spot with plenty of sunlight is a must for placing your kiddie pool garden.
Your backyard will undoubtedly have a spot where you receive sufficient sunlight. Sunlight, being an essential element in determining the growth of plants, needs to be provided in suitable amounts. Hence, you must ensure that you place the kiddie pool in a location where tall trees or heavy plants do not block the sunlight.
It solely depends on what you grow in your kiddie pool. Some plants prefer low sunlight, and some prefer more sunlight. Hence, you must know the sunlight requirement for the plants you grow in your kiddie pool and then decide the location of your kiddie pool garden.
2. Knowing the Water Requirements for Your Kiddie Pool Garden
Sunlight and water requirements go hand in hand in making a garden. Hence, knowing the water requirements for your kiddie pool garden is also essential. Watering your kiddie pool garden is recommendable to prevent water scarcity for plants.
However, you must water only when the soil is dry, as overwatering often causes the plants to rot. Apart from this, you will have to know the plant’s water requirement you grow in the kiddie pool.
You must note that making holes at the bottom of your kiddie pool is necessary for better water drainage. A kiddie pool garden is also the best way to reuse rainwater harvested in buckets. So keep your kiddie pool garden hydrated.
3. Discovering Your Best Collection of Plants to Grow in a Kiddie Pool
Above all, choosing the perfect collection of plants to grow in the kiddie pool is necessary. Many people often get confused while making this choice. However, you are making a kiddie pool garden to grow your food, as mentioned earlier. Hence, you must grow only those you prefer making your food.
You can grow plants that require more space which you can not get on a raised bed or a standard garden plot. Growing plants like watermelon, peppers, cherry tomatoes, etc., is easier. A kiddie pool keeps the roots of these plants well maintained and prevents them from spreading out too far.
Leafy greens and hearty vegetables, such as lettuce or spinach, also do well in a kiddie pool garden as they can be planted directly into the moist soil. Your choices need not end here. You can also choose a herbal garden for your kiddie pool.
Some herbs that grow well in a kiddie pool garden are basil, thyme, mint, lavender, rosemary, oregano, etc. You need not only choose fruits or vegetables to grow in your kiddie pool garden. Flower plants such as marigolds and petunias also do well in a kiddie pool garden.
4. Getting the Suitable Soil for Your Kiddie Pool Garden
Soil is the essential element for a garden and needs to be well-suited for the plants you wish to grow. If you are too confused about the type of soil you should use for your plants, here are a few suggestions.
A potting soil mix from a nursery or plant store might suit your plants well. They know the type of soil that suits the plants you select. However, you can always make your mix of soil.
You need topsoil to mix with composted material, such as coffee grounds, eggshells, and leaves. The option to choose a soil type is not limited to this. You can use the soil in your yard to add to your kiddie pool garden. Using potting soil or peat moss adds ease and convenience to your gardening methods by lighting the heavy clay content that might be present in some areas of the soil in your yard.
If you are a beginner at gardening, you can also use sand in your kiddie pool to keep unwanted weeds in check that might grow around the pool’s edges. Sand lacks nutrients that give it a plus point to be used in a kiddie pool garden. Hence, it is how you can do well with the soil in your kiddie pool garden.
How to Make a Kiddie Pool Garden?
You have a kiddie pool ready to go into the trash. However, you do not know how to upcycle it into a garden that could grow and flourish. But worry not, as we have provided a step-by-step guide to transforming your kiddie pool into an ever-growing garden.
- Get a kiddie pool: Simply, you need a kiddie pool in a not very bad condition to make a garden. You can either reuse an old kiddie pool or get one from a store that sells old items.
- Drill holes: Before anything else, you need to form a proper base for your plants to grow safely. A good water drainage system is something that ensures the same. Hence, you must make holes in the kiddie pool with a drilling machine or a cutter.
You should make enough holes to ensure no water gets collected in it during watering. You can also use landscaping fabric for the bottom and sides of the kiddie pool.
- Deciding the location: This is the point where you must decide where to place your kiddie pool or where you would like to see your kiddie pool garden. So choose according to the collection of plants you wish to grow.
- Add soil: Now it is time to add soil to your kiddie pool. You must choose a perfect location beforehand, as you can hardly move the kiddie pool once the soil is placed. You must fill your kiddie pool with soil at least to a depth of 12 inches for proper plant growth. After adding the soil, you can add any fertilizer that goes well with whatever you are planting.
After filling it into the kiddie pool, you must pat down the soil to help it settle well. Also, do not forget to add a fence to prevent your garden from rodent issues. - Seeds: Finally, it is time to add life to your kiddie pool garden. You can add seeds or seedlings of the plants you wish to grow and water the soil.
Your kiddie pool garden is all set to grow and thrive in your tiny space where you can grow your own food. However, taking care of the plants according to their requirements is necessary. You can spray bug repellents and fertilizers regularly to achieve the same.
Final Verdict
A kiddie pool is a great way to enhance your gardening skills and give a new life to your backyard. It is beneficial in many ways as you can grow your food besides upcycling something that would end up in the trash. So hurry up and grab that kiddie pool from your storeroom.