Bird Cage Planters - Tutorial plus 15 Decorative Birdcage Planter Ideas (2024)

These lovely bird cage planters are a great way to showcase your succulent plant collection and are great for any trailing plants.

Their size is perfect and the wire framework of most birdcages makes them very easy to water. You can use plants in bird cages both outdoors and inside the home.

I am always on the look out for new and interesting ideas for eco-friendly planters.

Nurseries and plant shops have lots of them for sale, of course, but it is also great to see re-purposed items used as planters. This saves money and also helps to save the environment.

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Don't throw that old bird cage away! Recycle it into a charming bird cage planter. These creative containers for plants and flowers can be used outdoors and inside the home. Check them out on The Gardening Cook. Click To Tweet

Tips for making decorative bird cages for plants

First you will need a birdcage. You can buy a new one, but a lot of fun in this type of project is to recycle an older style. An added bonus is that you will save a lot of money.

Where to find a used bird cage

Look for a used birdcage in these locations:

• Thrift shops and consignment stores
• Ebay
• Your local Craig’s list
• Yard sales

There are a few things to consider when you buy a birdcage. Be sure to chick out the size to make sure it will hold the plants you want to put in it.

Also, look to see if there is a way to get into the inside to plant your plants. This means wide openings in the metal or a small door. Some birdcages have an opening that will swivel off which really makes planting easy.

Also consider the material that the birdcage is made from to make sure they will withstand the weather if you plan to use them outdoors.

Wooden birdcages are fine for indoor use, but will rot easily when used outside.

The color is not too important, since you can easily change it with some weather proof spray paint.

Birdcage planter supplies:

One you have the birdcage, you will also need a few extra supplies.

Coco fiber or sphagnum moss liners will keep the soil inside the birdcage. You’ll also need some potting soil suited to the plant you will be adding.

If you don’t want the look of the coco liner, you can put a shallow container in the base of the bird cage and plant in that.

If you are using silk plants or flowers, oasis foam is a good way to anchor them in the bird cage.

Bird cage planters can be planted with live plants, or silk flowers or plants. Gather together a good supply of plants. It is surprising how many will fit into a bird cage.

For live plants try to group those with the same light and watering needs for best results.

Bird cage plants

Decorating bird cages with plants is a lot of fun. There are so many plants that can be grown in a birdcage planter. Try some of these:

• Succulents – use a combination of rosette and trailing types
• Green vining plants such as ivy, devil’s ivy, pothos and creeping Jenny are good choices.
• Trailing plants that flower look nice. Some good choices are petunias, fuchsias, angel wing begonias, spider plants, creeping snapdragon, and ivy geranium.
• Single plants in pots inside a birdcage will work, too. The sky is the limit on this idea!
• Silk flowers or silk plants can be used so that no watering is involved.

Planting the bird cage

Adding plants to a bird cage works in much the same way as adding them to any arrangement.

Using coco fiber as your planting medium allows you to fill up the whole inside of the bird cage with plants. Just keep adding fiber to the center and plant along the outside edges.

Use a combination of filler, thriller and spiller plants.

Small filler plants fill in the arrangement. A thriller plant is usually just one focal plant that has a wow factor, and spiller plants spill over the edges of the bird cage and dangle down the outside.

Find out how I used succulents in an arrangement to use the filler, spiller and thriller technique here.

If you use oasis foam and silk flowers, treat the bird cage as a container for an arrangement and arrange the silk flowers and leaves from the center with the oasis as your base.

Birdcage planters turn trash into treasure.

Now that you know how to make a birdcage planter, let’s get some inspiration.

Whether you use modern ones, or find old vintage bird cages, when you turn unused bird cages into birdcage planters, you will have a unique and unusual garden decor idea that is sure to draw compliments.

Birdcages with plants in them are a favorite project for gardeners who have a creative touch. Use these ideas for indoor and outdoor birdcage planters as inspiration for your next gardening project.

Indoor bird cage planters

Bird cages of all sizes can be used indoors to display small arrangements of dried flowers or larger planters with silk plants.

To use a bird cage planter indoors for real plants, just place the plant, together with its pot and saucer, in the bottom of the bird cage. This makes watering easier.

Here are a few of my favorite ideas for indoor bird cage planters.

Bird cage hanging planter for ferns and ivy

This lovely planter can be used in any indoor setting. Silk leaves are attached with twist ties to the outside bars of the bird cag and allowed to dangle down gently.

Bird cage planter for wheatgrass

This pretty blue washed filigree bird cage has been repurposed to use as a planter for growing wheatgrass.

This grass grows easily and quickly (see my tutorial here) and makes a whimsical decorative display piece when planted in a bird cage. All you need is a container the size of the base of your bird cage and some wheat grass seeds.

Imagine this with plastic Easter eggs sitting in the grass for Easter?

Elaborate bird cage planter

Feeling crafty? This elaborate bird cage planter combines wooden birds with succulent plants, flowers and leaves for a magnificent display that could be the centerpiece of any sprig garden party.

The fine wires of the bird cage does a great job of separating the various sections of the display.

Silk flower display in a birdcage

Use oasis foam in the bottom of a bird cage to attach silk flowers and leaves for a pleasing arrangement.

You could easily switch out the colors to switch from spring to fall and Christmas with this idea.

For real leaves and flowers add a bowl under the oasis and keep it watered to keep the flowers alive.

Bird cage outdoor planters

The sky is the limit for outdoor decorative bird cages for gardens. As long as your birdcage is made of a material that will withstand the elements, it can be planted with many types of plants and used on your patio or around the garden.

Here are a few ideas for inspiration.

Decorative bird cage planter

This decorative design with a pointed roof is embellished with acrylic butterflies for an unusual effect.

A drop of hot glue will attach the butterflies and your project is ready for plants. Source: Flickr.

Succulent birdcage planter

Those tiny succulent plants get a new home in this pretty birdcage planter. Group them in a single layer in their tiny pots on the base of the bird cage and you have a mini succulent garden.

To use this idea indoors, place a large saucer under the collection so you won’t get water on the floor below it.

Framed bird cage garden planter

This idea takes the term garden art to a new height. (literally!)

Use wire to suspend a white picture frame larger than the size of your bird cage to a tree in your garden.

More wires hold the bird cage filled with plants in the center of the frame. Very artistic!

Bird cage planter for a single plant

I love the way the leaves of the plant dangles down from the planter in this design.

This idea can also be used indoors by putting a saucer under the plant to make watering mess-free.

Greenhouse bird cage terrarium

The shape of this bird house brings to mind a greenhouse or conservatory.

Group your cactus plants in it. If you use this idea outdoors, any pots will do. For indoor use, be sure the pots have no drainage holes.

Since cactus plants need very little watering, maintenance is a breeze on this little collection.

Which of these is your favorite? Have you turned a bird cage into a planter for your gardener? Please share your ideas in the comments section below.

Admin note: this post for bird cage planters first appeared on the blog in April of 2013. I have updated the post to add new photos, more bird cage planter ideas, and a video for you to enjoy.

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