Empty wheelbarrows, how I love them…
Wheelbarrow Gardening! There is something I feel, about empty and rusty, crusty old wheelbarrows that’s the same as with a fresh new planting bed. A blank slate. I don’t know why,…I just know that the fantastical potential is there. Scroll through these beauties and see if you’re as nuts as I am.
Winning wheelbarrows
Kirk Willis’s vintage wheelbarrow, with the very desirable metal wheel
Kirk Willis’s wheelbarrow will soon be filled with flowers or succulents. This is a gem, with the all-metal construction, and will likely last his lifetime. He doesn’t want to make drainage holes, so will use gravel or stones underneath.
Nancy K. Meyer’s ‘perfectly blue’ wheelbarrow
Nancy K. Meyer says, “Look what I got this week ~~~rusty, crusty, and BLUE ~~~ just waiting for spring.”
Jane Krauter’s cat has tried to re-assemble this very old wheelbarrow
The chicken coop’s very old metal wheeled barrow
This is How I Roll – Wheelbarrow Gardening
What you think:
Karen Settles says, “If you are crazy then we are all crazy . . . . old wheel barrows and carts are the basic “nuts and bolts” that can pull the garden together as far as I am concerned. An old empty wheel barrow has a magnetic attraction that will grab a gardener’s eye in an instant and hold their heart forever.
Kathy Mahoney I think of all the uses of my wheelbarrows! I couldn’t live without mine when I was working in the garden, raking leaves, or giving kids rides in it.
Joyce Vargo says, “Pieces like that have been part of gardens since ancient times. They are called “ruins,” and have been around on large or small scales since the Egyptians started planting pleasure gardens.”
Nancy K. Meyer’s red wheelbarrow has its own story. And see ‘Big Blue’ just behind
Nancy K. Meyer tells the story, “SO—-on Sundays, I pick up two of my older lady friends and take them to church with me. They have always known I am a little wacky. On the curb was (WAS) this wheelbarrow with a sign on it—FREE! Slam on brakes, back up, and into my truck before church. Who knows it could have been gone after services! RED, rusty, and it has a drain hole. Happy dance!
Sue Nortonr’s Rusty Red
Sue Norton tells us, “I thought I’d share my new treasure. I’ll plant it with winter cabbage and kale.”
I found this old beauty on a dirt road in a California mining area
Now it sits in a corner of the patio, ready to be planted with bright flowers
See the whole story: How to plant a rusty wheelbarrow for the garden
Connie Dee Schnecker’s old wooden wheelbarrow
Connie Dee Schnecker says, “Can’t wait to change the wheel out, and plant some pretty succulents for this sweet piece to house!”
Denise Allen’s lovely rusty barrow
Denise Allen tells us, “I got this treasure today while taking a walk with my husband around the neighborhood! It was laying in a pile of rocks, I offered my neighbor $5 for it and I can’t wait to play with it in my garden! …..And,… now to go back for those rocks! Any suggestions on how to preserve the metal without changing the rust color? I want to keep the rust look without it deteriorating any further. We suggest a coat of Thompson’s Water Seal.
Kim Amond’s was found at great sacrifice
Kim Amond says, “Last week I posted on Craigslist looking for an old metal wheelbarrow and I scored two from the same person. Most people have stuff to get rid of that they just don’t know what to do with. This guy had basically a “junk yard” of stuff on his property.”
“There was an vintage metal kid’s wagon,” Kim says, “that I’m just kicking myself now for not taking, but I’m not going back. I made my husband drive 38 miles to get these two wheelbarrows. After he saw my old wicker bench and what I did with it, he actually complimented it and now is giving in to my wanting “junk”. I was inspired by the photo by Jean Morrow on Sue’s last wheelbarrow post. Can’t wait to do a fall-themed wheelbarrow!”
The Bee’s Knees’ colorful wheelbarrow
The ‘Bee’s Knees’ says, “This wheelbarrow has some rust and chippy blu-ish paint. I love wheelbarrows in the garden! I’ll wipe a poly-coat on it to prevent further rust and paint loss. In the garden, I turn the barrel on it’s side spilling soil out, spreading it out. That makes a neat little plant vignette in the spilled soil. It’s not your Mother’s garden or grandmother’s. I must say,… my grandmothers, both of them, had beautiful gardens!”
Where to find wheelbarrows
In order of likelihood, find old wheelbarrows for the garden, which have a short useful life for contractors, on trash day, at yard sales and Flea Markets.
With anything you’ve been wanting for a long time,…it’s even sweeter when you finally find one. If you know any concrete or contsruction contractors, ask them to save an old one….they go through them fast!
