Planting a May Charity Find

Discovering ways to rescue, restore and re-use yesterday’s rubbish introduces a combination of simplicity and creativity that is often missing from busy modern lifestyles. And whilst recycling has become a familiar topic, it is being upstaged by upcycling — the process of transforming old or discarded items into something useful, and often beautiful, that is often better and of greater value than the original. Inventive gardeners can see possibilities in the most unlikely and unloved objects, but when used as plant containers, it is vital to ensure they provide good growing conditions. This shallow basket, costing pennies in a charity shop, is ideal for growing succulents such as sempervivum, sedum and echeveria. These are easy-going, drought tolerant plants that thrive in multi-purpose compost.