A gardening expert has shared an eco-friendly method to use up cardboard packaging that would otherwise be thrown in the bin – helping you to save money and aiding the environment
Jess Flaherty Senior News Reporter
15:17, 05 Feb 2026Updated 15:17, 05 Feb 2026
A professional gardener has urged people not to throw away their old carboard (stock image)(Image: Vithun Khamsong via Getty Images)
A gardening expert has revealed a “clever” way to repurpose cardboard packaging that would typically end up in the bin or recycling.
Cardboard is a common material used to protect online purchases during transit, meaning many households accumulate quite a stash. But Sunday Times bestselling author and gardening guru Simon Akeroyd has come up with a nifty fix.
The seasoned horticulturist, boasting over 25 years in the trade, champions an environmentally sound method for reusing the material. He encourages people to fashion biodegradable planters for their gardens.
In a TikTok clip, Simon walks viewers through the process. First, he submerges the cardboard in water. Once he retrieves the sodden cardboard, it becomes pliable, allowing him to mould it around empty glass jars and metal tins before “scrunching” the base to form container-shaped moulds.
After drying, the cardboard holds its pot-like shape – at which point it can be lifted away from the jars or tins to stand independently.
Text overlaying the clip explains: “You now have free biodegradable flower pots. Pop your seed into some compost and once it has germinated, you can plant your seedlings and pot directly into the soil.”
Additional text notes: “No need to disturb the roots when planting as the pot will decompose and the roots grow through it.”
Simon concluded: “Enjoy your free, eco-friendly flower pots.”
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In the caption accompanying his post, he explained further: “This is a wonderful eco-friendly way to use up excess online, or cardboard packaging. It’s also a great project to do if you run a school gardening club or a community garden.
“This is one of many gardening ideas or gardening hacks featured in my latest book, Way to Grow.”
One TikTok follower applauded the concept, gushing: “You’re so clever! Always thinking of new things!!!”
Simon’s new gardening book, Way to Grow, hits shelves on April 9. Inside, the seasoned horticulturist shares “100 of [his] top tips to help you save time and money and have fun while growing plants.”
It caters to everyone, from novices to “more experienced growers”, offering advice like repurposing coffee grounds and “old tights”, plus clever tricks to “water pots with lengths of string”, fashion a watering can from a milk bottle, and nourish plants with banana peels.
Those battling slugs can discover how sheep’s wool acts as a natural deterrent, while potato enthusiasts can cultivate their crop in “a tower built from chicken wire”, and houseplant fanatics can learn how to “grow a cactus from supermarket fruit”, among numerous other suggestions.
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