Soda Bottle Planter

What You Need:

• Two-liter soda bottle
• Water-based marker
• Ruler
• Sharp knife
• Kitchen scissors
• Single hole punch
• Thick string or twine
• Potting soil
• Small plants or seeds
• Optional: Assorted permanent marker pens to decorate your planter

What You Do:

1. Help your child use a ruler and a permanent marker to mark a line on the bottle about three inches from the bottom. Make sure the line goes all the way around the bottle.
2. Have your child stand aside while you use a sharp knife to puncture the plastic bottle along the marked line.
3. Now that the knife got him started, let him use scissors to cut the rest of the bottle.
4. Remove the bottom of the bottle -- your child won't need it for the rest of the project.
5. Help him use the hole punch to make four holes around the rim of the plastic bottle. The holes should be evenly spaced.
6. Have him use the ruler again to measure out four three-foot-long pieces of thick string or twine.
7. Let him thead one string through each of the four holes in the plastic bottle.
8. Help him tie all four strings together, at least several inches away from the holes.
9. Check to make sure the cap is still screwed on the bottle. Your child's soda bottle planter won't work very well if soil falls out the bottom!
10. Have him fill the bottle with potting soil.
11. Help him plant seeds or even a full-grown plant in the soil.
12. Let your child find a good place to hang your planter -- somewhere with easy access to sunlight.

Have your child use his newest recycled masterpiece as a decorative item or a gift for a family member of friend! Encourage him to even write on the bottle with a permanent marker or to add stickers for an extra fancy look.