Don't know if you have a Joann Fabric store near you but they have a huge selection of planters and containers and they are now on sale at 60% off. A huge deal, IMO.

Patty

Thanks, Patty...

I'm in Omaha and I don't recall ever hearing about a Joann Fabric store. I'll try to find out. Where are you located?

I've found some great deals on big pots at estate auctions. My best find was a gorgeous heavy terra cotta pot, about 30 inches high and 36 inches wide, with grapes vines in relief on the side. Got it for $10 when nobody else bid on it. I've seen similar pots for $150 in stores.
You can find auctions in your area at the link below. They're fun, just don't get carried away. And it's time consuming. You have to sit through a lot of stuff you don't want to get to the stuff you do.
I've picked up some nice porch rockers, rustic benches, etc. for $5 to $10 at auctions.
Yard sales and moving sales are good sources, too. People usually don't want to move big pots.
Look at anything as a potential pot: crocks, churns, kettles, baskets, etc.

Here is a link that might be useful: live auctions

Looks like there are some in your area, but the online site doesn't show the degree of gardening paraphenalia that my local store carries. It is mainly a sewing and craft store, but the one near me has a large section of planters, containers, garden and patio accesories and knick-knacks. Might be worth a call.

Patty

Here is a link that might be useful: Joann stores

I bought plastic heavy duty containers at Lowe's two years ago and they were only $7. each. They were large enough for my tomato plants and they are starting their 3rd season. Sorry I don't remember the size, but they were rectangular and came with a cover. They were for storing things in your garage. Next time I go outside, I will measure them for you.

Also, the Christmas Tree Shops had 1/2 whiskey barrels in cedar that were also large and pretty good looking for $16. each. Although they were out of them last time I was there.

:-)

Seems like I recall someone using metal or plastic trash containers for this purpose. Holes were drilled in the bottom.

WELL IF YOUR NOT REAL CONCERNED ON LOOKS, YOU CAN USE PLASTIC TRASH CANS(DRILL FOR DRAINAGE),THERE'S THE BIG PLASTIC TUBS, SOME HAVE MOLD HANDLES,SOME ROPE. THE ONES I HAVE ARE 21"WX17"D . MOST DEPT. STORES OR DISCOUNT CARRY THEM AND MOST COME IN VARIETY OF SIZES. GALVANIZED WASH TUBS. SOME HARDWARE STORES CARRY THEM OR TRY FARM SUPPLY STORES. STORAGE TOTE'S(MOST COME WITH LIDS) AND COME A HUGE RANGE OF SIZES. IUSE THESE TO STORE POTTING MIXES. ANY THING PLASTIC ,IF YOU DON'T LIKE THE COLOR,IT AIN'T NOTHING A CAN OF KRYLON FUSION SPRAY PAINT WONT FIX. IT'S MADE TO PAINT PLASTIC AND WORKS GREAT. LIKE ONE OF THE OTHER POST'S,GARAGE SALES,FLEA MARKETS,AUCTION ARE GREAT PLACES TO LOOK . PETTY MUCH .IF IT WILL HOLD POTTINGMIX AND YOU CAN PUT DRAINAGE IN IT ,IT'LL WORK !!!! .....MIKE 5B OH.

I rarely buy a container new at a store.
I go to yard sales, flea marts and thrift stores.
I have things planted in stadium speakers, baskets (they lose alot of water), wine barrels $6-10 each
As for large containers, I frequently find the alluminum feeders at yard sales in the country.
As someone else mentioned, moving and estate sales don't want to move the containers, so they usually sell pretty cheap on the last day. HTH

I used to fret about all the nursery pots piling up behind the greenhouse. You can never use them all up, but I can't bear to throw them away. So I found a way to use them.

I use 'Great Stuff' to change the look! Just spray that stuff on, it will be in rows or dollups, and let it dry. Then paint it with the 96cent spray paint at WM.

I have done this with 5 gallon pots, the mollasses tubs that cattle feed comes in, storage boxes, etc., etc. Very little money, and it is interesting to look at.

Janie

trashcans,rubbermaid containers,junk yard for old grills,wheelbarrels,55 gallon drums,

you could build one out of wood and plastic liner for real cheap.

Big box stores often sell plastic muck buckets with rope handles in a variety of colors. I've heard of people even planting in plastic kiddy wading pools!

http://www.arts4all.com/elca/page1.html
Here are the plastic wading pool containers.

Garage sales, or good old dumpster diving ... I have some beautiful pots ... the styrofoam type quite large ... people throw away ... hubby puts wire around so they will not fall apart and once the plants take over you do not see any defects. Also there was a Martha Stewart show on mixing green paint, beige paint, some dirt and rubbing on pots with defects you have or found and they look terrific when paint dries.

soil_lover - thanks for that link! That is cool. :-D

I rather like the idea of glow in the dark paint. That's ingenious. It would be great to quickly spot stolen properties.

Not long ago, there was a woman who was arrested for stealing plants. She stole a plastic - rather ho-hum planter from a neighbor's front porch. The victim was so incensed that he went door to door to locate his missing planter and he found it on her porch and phoned the police. When the police arrived they discovered that not only did she steal the planter, she also took other garden accessories (gnomes,etc.) and large barbecue grills. The cops found several grills in her backyard. The woman was a kleptomaniac. She just took things for the sake of taking them.

Looks like it's time to keep an eye on the seasonal changes at some stores. I was at Big Lots yesterday and they are reducing the garden supplies. Got (2) 16" terracotta for $6 each and a glazed blue 16" for $10

I used waste paper baskets from Target. They have nice ones that flute at the top and are pearlized white.

DH gets our big ones at costco,they look like terra cotta ,but are plastic.
Kathi

Ditto on costco. I got some pretty big ones there that really do look like terra cotta for $15 or $16 and much bigger ones that sort of look like stone for, I think, $20. You don't,actually,need to do extreme weight training to move them around.

Kentp,

You might try your local nursery that carries large plants and bushes. they usually have a great deal of plastic pots which are put in a corner in all different sizes. Thats where i go to get all my vegy containers.He charges me a dime for a 12" high for my tomatoes.I beleive the containers that bushes and trees were planted in go for less than $15.00, i dont know the exact size.

I like the big plastic protein supplement tubs someone in Texas mentioned. Mine are red and hold about 20 gal but I've seen other brands that come blue and green. Just ask any local farmer or feed store owner if you are in a rural area. I use mine for other things besides plant containers--feed storage, brooding a small number of chicks, covering newly planted things to protect them from sun/wind until they get established, muck buckets (I really do have "muck" from goats and sheep).

I got a bunch of nice big nursery pots last week through Freecycle.org for my area. The parents of the lady who made the offer had just built a new home and these were the containers that had held their new landscaping material. The smallest are about 3 gal up to larger than a bushel basket. Black plastic isn't the most attractive but this thread has given me some ideas for decorating.

I just recently started using small waste baskets that I got from Lowe's at under 4$ each. I thing they're 7 gallon or something like that.

I bought black ones and drilled holes in the bottom for drainage. I'm using them for large hot pepper plants to be overwintered. The shape of the baskets look kind of like a jumbo sized flat cell so I figure it should be perfect for my purpose.

If you find them unsightly, you can use a variety of painting techniques to pretty them up like fleckstone. I've also started planting small creeping plants at the base of these mini trees and it balances everything out well and calls attention to the wonderful greenery as opposed to the understated container.

I recently found an even cheaper however smaller container, the dollar store near me has the exact same shaped waste paper baskets (just smaller) and they are 7 qt.

I'm all into looking for low priced containers. I found a bunch at Gordman's last weekend, some of which I'm planning on buying for my garden.

The best advice I can give is to start looking for pot sales at local garden centers and home improvement stores. The closer you get to winter, the more the pots go on sale. Recently I bought a $50 terra cota pot at Lowe's for $35 dollars when hitting thier pot sale and using a $10 off card they mailed me.

Some other ideas include using a galvanized tub (you can paint these to be any color you'd like), creating your own or buying plastic pots that look organic. A great book that teaches you how to do some of this stuff is "Projects for Small Gardens" by Bird and Carter. There is a wonderful section on creating and decorating containers.

Hope this helps!