Plant up a chimney pot container

In this No Fuss video guide, Kevin Smith, BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine, uses an old chimney to make an alternative container display. Follow his guide and learn how to make your own.

More advice on growing plants in pots and containers:

• How to create a winter container display for shade
• How to grow salad leaves in a container
• Sowing salad in pots

Plant up a chimney pot container: transcript

It’s possible to use virtually anything for a container. I’ve seen butler sinks, wellington boots and even toilets, all stuffed with plants. I’ve got a chimney pot here and I’m going to use it as a planter.

The first thing you need to do is find a plastic plant pot. You want one that will just slot into the top and sit comfortably in there. Now, I’ve put a few bricks in the main body of the chimney that actually gives the plant pot something to sit on and also means that it’s nice and sturdy. First of all, I’m just going to add a little bit of multi-purpose compost to my pot. Now, I’m going to add in my first plant. It’s called a ribbon fern. It’s got
a really curious habit and it’s really full of texture and interest. Put it right in the middle and I’m just going to add a little bit more compost in there.

Next, I’ve got some of these little trailing ivys. Now, you often find with these that there are several little plants, all in one pot. So I’m just going to split them up, into individual plants and then place them around the edge of the fern, so that they trail over the edge. And then in turn, they will also trail over the edge of the chimney. I’m just going to go all the way round until there’s ivy all around the edge.

So my plastic pot is fully planted now and all I need to do is slot it into the chimney. I think that looks great. The fern’s providing a little bit of height, while the ivy trails over the edge. This is perfect for a shady spot.