you can also then crochet the balls into rugs

seriously!
They can be awesome plant ties...they're soft and won't hurt tender plants and I have also used the same cutting technique to crochet rag rugs.

ViolaAnn: Thanks for this tip ... Oh, I love this idea! I end up with so many T-shirts that are worn and stained and I hate to throw them in the trash, now I have a great recycling use for them!

threegardeners said:seriously!
They can be awesome plant ties...they're soft and won't hurt tender plants and I have also used the same cutting technique to crochet rag rugs.

Thought you were being funny.

Awesome tip. A great 'Waste not, want not' idea.

Just got home from Vancouver, BC - spent most of the day on a plane. The rest - grocery shopping as the larders were bare here.

A couple of things should be mentioned - make sure the shirts are 100% cotton if you want them to decompose in the compost. I used to use old nylon stockings (remember them - haven't worn anything other than knee-highs for awhile), but they would go through the compost again and again. I suspect polyester would as well.

I've also sometime dyed the shirts with a packet of green dye or just strong tea and coffee.

You can also cut up the top of the shirt between the shoulders if you wish, but the strips will have to be tied together. I don't usually bother with the sleeves. If you decide to crochet with them, you won't want to tie knots, but crocheted mats might be a good way to use all the multi-coloured shirts you have.

As Lee Anne said, the strips stretch with the plants and won't hurt them. I've done this for awhile with great success.

Ann

terrific idea. Its a nice winter project.

Terrific tip! I would never have thought of it.

One other thought - this makes a good project for when stuck behind the TV set. I always feel better if I'm doing something with my hands.

The plastic bags that supermarkets put groceries in can be cut into 2" wide circles that form gentle cradles or supports for tomato vines, though you need some string to pull the ends of the loop up to some higher support.

I like your idea of cutting on a spiral, to get a longer strip and eliminate the need for string.

These plastic strips are glare-white, which might be ugly, but they do reflect light back onto the leaves. And you need to pull them out of the vines before composting.

And you need to pull them out of the vines before composting.

That's the big issue for me. I like something that will compost and, of course, I had way too many old T-shirts.

>> and, of course, I had way too many old T-shirts.

Ah hah! I accumulate those supermarket-plastic-bags and tend to recycle a cubic foot of them at a time.

Rick - we now have to PAY for plastic bags at supermarkets and many other stores. Most people have invested in reusable bags that the stores also sell for $1. Means a lot fewer plastic bags going to the landfill.

But, if you are recycling a lot of them, see if there's a food bank near you which would like to reuse the bags. I used to run a local food program and still volunteer there. We used to go through hundreds of used plastic bags each week. (Not so much now that most people bring their own).

I bought several of those resusable shopping bags (kind of like cheesy canvas). But I always forget to have one in my car when I drive past the supermarket.

WA state just defeated a measure to forbid supermarkets from using those bags. I thought I might have to stockpile them and tape up the rips.

Before I recycle my next bushel o' bags, I will look for a food bank!

Keep you reusable bags in the trunk and you'll have them when you need them.

We don't have legislation here. I think the time was just right for the stores to start charging and selling the reusable ones. A few do still give plastic and it's handy to know where when one needs a supply.

I don't mind the grocery stores, but a few other stores are also starting to charge for their bags and sometimes their products don't fit in reusable bags.

ViolaAnn said:Rick - we now have to PAY for plastic bags at supermarkets and many other stores. Most people have invested in reusable bags that the stores also sell for $1. Means a lot fewer plastic bags going to the landfill.

But, if you are recycling a lot of them, see if there's a food bank near you which would like to reuse the bags. I used to run a local food program and still volunteer there. We used to go through hundreds of used plastic bags each week. (Not so much now that most people bring their own).

I save my plastic bags and send them to my aunt, who runs a food bank in her small Ohio town

I really like this T-shirt idea... with all the fellows in the house, we go through a lot of t-shirts! So far, we've been cutting them up to use in place of paper towels. If they are nasty with grease and not washable (We would pay an arm and a leg to get Roto-rooter out here), we throw them out, but other stuff gets rewashed.

Thankfully, the grocery stores here do not charge (except ALDI), but many discount your total 5-10 cents for every bag you reuse. I used to always forget my bags, but we got into the habit. Some stores I purposely want their plastic bags, Menard's is one. I like those in the small trash cans because they are heavier than most grocery store bags.

In the kitchen, I reuse cereal insert bags, bread, tortilla and bagel bags for trash... anything without a recycle number. All the numbered bags get hauled to the grocery store. . Lots of small trips to the dumpster we have out back, but it's such a waste to just throw them out without at least one reuse.