My Little Red Wagon Planter

So I am always looking for cool and original items to use within my landscape to use as planters, trellises or garden decor. Here lately I have been experimenting a bit, while doing some fall garden prep. Winter doesn't technically begin until December 21st, so I figured I would try my hand at planting some tulip bulbs before the weather turns on me. And it just so happens I have this unusual and incredibly cool wagon/tricycle hybrid that has been languishing behind my shed for almost two years...finally time to do something with it!

To give you a little background, my husband is a welder by trade and a project junkie by heart. Thank goodness for that, because he is always willing to help me when I get these wild inspirations for creating garden art. Anyway, this was our daughter's wagon from when she was small and we have had it for AGES! Once she grew out of it and her brother came along, my husband decided to take an old, rusted Radio Flyer tricycle and our very well loved Radio Flyer metal wagon and weld them together. He made a cool hauler trike for our boy to play with. And play with it he did, but he also has a Power Wheels Jeep that he LOVES and has proven to be the favorite. As time went on the wagon gradually got banished behind the shed. I decided that since no one played with it anymore that it was time to re-invent the old Flyer into the coolest planter that I have had yet!

Now I totally realize not many people have metal wagons just laying around. However if you do have some cool, old junk that has just been sitting there forever, you never know what it could be used for, given a little inspiration. So, with the help of my husband, we drilled holes into the bottom of the wagon for drainage. To be honest, he did that part and I handled the rest. This was definitely a collaborative effort!

I filled the wagon almost completely to the top with soil, leaving about an inch at the top. I got a big bag full of tulip bulbs, thirty to be exact and I am hoping for a wagon full of flowers come spring! I had a lot of extra soil from a previous gardening project from last year, that I also mixed with a little leaf ash. Leaf ash is a great fertilizer for ornamentals but you don't need much. A little goes a long way!

Anytime you are planting bulbs, you want to make sure the pointed end goes up. This is where your pretty bloom will come up! So time will tell on this project, but I am confident that when spring rolls in I will have tulips of every color bursting out of this rustic and retro planter.

As I was finishing my bulb planting, I had an unexpected guest, my very last hummingbird of the season! I got some wonderful pictures of her as she gets ready for her long migration. I kept my feeder out for another week, hoping she might come back, but I think that was the last one for this year.

Cheers to your fall garden work being a success and remember that the more you can get done now will be less work when spring comes back around. At least in theory.....Happy Planting!

See Part 2: Fresh Blooms in the Red Wagon Planter

Teresa Filgis is a freelance writer and an amateur gardener. She is a wife and mother of two and she loves spending quality time out in nature with her family. Teresa's writing focuses on parenting, gardening and camping/outdoor living. You can follow her on Instagram@tfilgis.