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My friends & I are thinking about using wine bottles to edge veg. beds on the lottie. Thinking of burying them, neck down, so part of the body of the bottle remains above ground. What we can't decide, or agree on, is should the bottles be filled with sand prior to burial?

I've seen this kind of edging referred to on here, but can't find it now. Apologies for starting a new topic.

i love that idea.

I saved bottles for ages and then thought that my ground is too hard and full of stones... I gave away all the bottles and they are now part of someones floor!

It has been discussed on here - I seem to recall HW posting a pic but can't find it again

Thanks Shirlz, I don't feel so thick for not being able to find it now that 2 of us have tried.

Can anyone else advise?

FOUND IT YAY.

The Aranya site that HW mentioned.

A wonderful idea. Water will collect in the bottle tops, providing a wee drink for the birds too...

I stumbled upon Aranya whislt on holiday a couple of years ago! Small world. Thank you for the link.

Trinity
xxx

My MIL loves the apple-tini mix that comes in a brick-shaped bottle. She gave me a crate of the bottles, and I used them to line a plant bed. (i need to take some pics to share!) I've always wanted to make a bottle house and have been nagging the hub to help me build one for an art studio. Short of that, I would love to cut the bottoms off of the glass jars and bottles that i've collected, and do a mosaic of them on the patio floor. Anyone know a good way to cut them?

Personally, i think the labels need to come off!!

I like them used in earthships in the bathroom wall building. There's one with blue and green bottles in the wall speparateing the bath and toilet, it looks brilliant because the light shines through the bottles.

If you were using them to line a path or flower bed, would it be possible to put a small fibre optic filament in each one (attached to a solar powered light source of course). I imagine it would look really pretty.

Zoe

ooh, you're right!
It would have to be specifically for outdoor use though - like outdoor fairly lights. They need to be waterproof still.

I've managed to convince my dad to let me put bottle-edging in the garden.
must find out about waterproof LEDs with Solar power source, then i can bury the wire in the beds, stick the lights in the bottles, bury the bottles, and then it will look really really pretty!!!

Ooh, what a good idea Thomzo!!

Can I take it then, that all those who have tried this haven't filled the bottles with sand prior to burying?

Sorry to keep harping on about this, but my friends are insistent the bottles should be filled. I don't think it's necessary. They have left it for me to seek arbitration here.

I love the lights idea, but that would have to be for home & I'm concentrating on the lottie for now. Still I can (& do) dream.

Synchronicity! I've just posted a thank you message to my local Freecycle group for the many green bottles I've been given for my own bed edging project... here's a picture;



In regard to remving the labels, with a small sink and even smaller amount of patience, and well over 100 bottles to deal with, I soon lost interest and instead decided to follow the permaculture principle of 'minimum effort' and just stuck them in, for the rain and weathering will soon clean them up. It also seems to be a waste of energy to fil them with sand or cut them in half, just shove 'em in!

That looks great QR!

Ranter wrote:Can I take it then, that all those who have tried this haven't filled the bottles with sand prior to burying?

Sorry to keep harping on about this, but my friends are insistent the bottles should be filled. I don't think it's necessary. They have left it for me to seek arbitration here.

I love the lights idea, but that would have to be for home & I'm concentrating on the lottie for now. Still I can (& do) dream.

I can see that your mates might be concerned that the bottles will break and that the sand might prevent this. If you did fill them with sand, how would you stop the sand falling out of the bottom? Would you put the corks back in? Each one???? Also, if they had corks and sand in then might they get damp inside through capillary action? Could that water then freeze causing the bottle to crack?

I don't know the answers to these just asking in case anyone does know.


Fee - if you do have a go at the lights thing please let us see it. I've been thinking about it for years but never really found the products to do it with.

Cheers
Zoe