Experiment - Flower Pots for Fruit Cages - will it work?

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canadian-gardening
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Experiment - Flower Pots for Fruit Cages - will it work?

Post by canadian-gardening » Fri Aug 28, 2026 9:09 am

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Hi everyone;
Still trying to get some fruit from my garden instead of critters left-overs.
I did this cage with hardware-cloth that I really like, but it's an extra expense.
viewtopic.php?t=432

What about all those flower pots that we have accumulated over the years?
That's my next project.
I will share my garden, but I refuse to accept critters left-overs.
My melons were growing well and then the next morning - they left me 3.
https://canadian-gardening.ca/growing-f ... atermelon/
I will be back! :)
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canadian-gardening
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Update - Flower Pots for Fruit Cages

Post by canadian-gardening » Fri Aug 28, 2026 10:08 am

Update: Trying the 5-gallon flower pot

Today I'm trying my old 5-gallon plastic flower pots as melon cages. I drilled/melted holes around the rim about 3 inches apart and I'm making a round wire lid with a notch for the melon stem.

The honeydew and cantaloupe are already almost ready to pick, so I'm designing this around harvesting rather than trying to build a permanent cage around the vine.

I'll lay the pot on its side, slide the melon inside, put the notched lid over the stem and secure it with thin wire. When the melon is ready, I'll snip the stem, remove the wire and take the melon out.

If I run out of flower pots, I'll go back to hardware cloth.
viewtopic.php?t=432
So far, I think this is going to be much less fiddly than making the hardware-cloth cages.

Going to find a picture that I took yesterday of the flower pot.
I have the holes drilled/melted - but haven't made the lid yet.
I'll probably turned the pot upside down on hardware-cloth and trace it.
Or maybe cut a wooden round and use it as a jig and trace it.
Depends how ambitious I feel at the moment. Not very. :)
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Update - Flower Pots for Fruit Cages - will it work?

Post by LionGardener » Fri Aug 28, 2026 10:50 am

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Picture of pot drilled.
For Drilling:
the pot is thin enough that I was able to melt a hole.
I didn't want to burn any of my tools so I found this piece of wire - bend it for something for me to hold on to.
I thick wire from a clothes hanger will work as well.
Oven gloves - heated the wire over the stove and burnt holes around the pot.

Now time to stop procrastinating and make the wire lid. :)
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pot-cage-drilled.jpg
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