Recycled Hanging Tire Planter

I was hoarding this single Tire for more than a year now, planning to put this to some good use. Finally today my old tire got a make over!! My neighbor complimented saying "It looks beautiful, great job".

A year of contemplation has gone into what was created today(thankfully I did not think of any other project I meant)!! I wanted to have a stacked planter in the center of my front yard. That needed more tires to hoard, but who would give it to me for free! I accidentally bumped into some pictures on Pinterest that led me to the blog which inspired me to create this.

It would be unfair not to give credit to https://diyshowoff.com/2013/07/02/diy-tire-planter-tutorial/ for helping me rescue this tire that would otherwise end up in landfill.

However not all steps were followed. I skipped adding styrofoam peanuts as I was lazy to look for them in my basement. Then I consoled myself saying anyways there isn't too much space to have peanuts and soil both together inside tire. I guess it was mentioned in tutorial to help drain water better. Let's see how my tire planter will fair over summer months.

Items Needed:
Tire
Krylon Spray Paint 2 small cans(I used Red Pepper from Joann's )
Drilling machine and 1/4 inch bit, of course a strong muscle needed, used Hubby (they come handy sometimes)
Potting soil
Weed Barrier Fabric
Annuals Plants of your choice( Petunias and Impatients are probably best)
Chain (20 ft long) from Menards (max capacity load of upto 155 lbs)
2 S stainless steel hooks

Method:
1. I washed my tire with soap and water and allowed it to dry outside for an hour or so
2. I used cardboard boxes flattened and placed this tire over two bricks so I could spray paint them outdoors.
3. I turned the other side of the tire and painted, I refrained not painting it inside.
4. I let it air dry for a day outdoors.
5. Hubby drilled 6 holes on the bottom of the tire, do the drilling from inside rather than outside. This can be done by keep tire on a cement step and extending only the drilling part out of the step. Makes life easier for the person who is drilling :-)
6. I picked a tree from where this tire would suspend. I picked a biggest tree in my front yard that had a slight horizontal branch. I made sure it did not hit the main branch when there was a heavy breeze.
7. I passed one end of the chain through a old bicycle tube that goes around tree branch. This helps in not leaving any marks or bruise on the tree branch.
8. I used one stainless steel hook to join the chain around a tree branch.
9. I then positioned where my tire would land and removed the extra links from the chain. Hubby did this for me! Used second S hook to hold the tire and the other end.
10. Hubby drilled 6 holes on the bottom of the tire, do the drilling from inside rather than outside. This can be done by keep tire on a cement step and extending only the drilling part out of the step. Makes life easier for the person who is drilling :-)
11. Cut out a weed barrier fabric and lay it inside, add the potting mix and stuff your choice of plants. I had combination of annuals and perennials.

A guy at Menards was so thrilled listening to my project. He spent good half hour explaining me on how to successfully suspend a tire with all metal fitting that won't rust. His inputs will be used for future projects but for now we did not use nuts/bolts as he advised instead S hooks!!

Please leave a comment if you end up doing this project!!