Don't Toss Your Old Wire Hangers! Try This Clever Way To Use Them In Your Garden

If you visit the dry cleaner regularly, you've probably got a stash of wire hangers you don't know what to do with. While those hangers may be fine for transporting your clothes from the cleaners to your home, they aren't ideal for long-term use, since they can stain, tear, or otherwise damage your delicate garments. Recycling wire hangers often isn't an option, and you don't want to send them to the landfill. Thankfully, there's a smart way to use old hangers instead of tossing them: The bendy wire is perfect for adding support to your plants.

Although tossing your unwanted wire hangers into the ground isn't the best solution, using them to help you grow things from the ground can be. To turn them into support structures, flex and bend a used hanger by pressing it into the soil and using the reshaped wire to keep your favorite plant in place. Another option for plant support, perfect for containers or indoor gardening, is to use wire hangers as a clever way to hang  plants. Shape the hanger into a circle, then slip a plant pot through it, so that the wire rests just under the lip of the pot. Use the hanger's hook to hang the pot from a window sill or railing.

To make a simple plant support with a single wire hanger, you'll need pliers and a wire cutter. Snip the hanger with the wire cutter so that you can unfold it into a straight line. Use the pliers to hold the hanger as you bend it straight. Once the hanger is straightened out, start bending it into an "S" shape or zig-zag. The bends in the wire provide support to trailing or vining plants, training them to grow upwards. The support is a great way to keep vining plants from taking over your home or garden.

Beautify the plant support by spray-painting it after shaping. Add a pop of color by choosing a vibrant shade of yellow, red, or blue, or go for shine with a metallic paint in gold or copper. Set the hanger on a piece of newspaper in a well-ventilated area (or outside), then spray with the paint. Let it dry as directed on the paint can.

When ready, press the plant support into the soil, near the plant's roots, either in a pot or in the ground. Drape the stems of the plant over and around the bends in the hanger. As your plant grows, gently guide its stem around the plant support, so that it continues to grow upright. Use the plant support indoors to hold up houseplants such as pothos, or outside to fix leaning plants, such as peas and tomato plants.