Creative Ways to Fix a Broken Flowerpot

Flowerpots are used for a number of functions and they are available in a wide variety of styles. Although popularly called flowerpots, they are actually ‘plant pots’, and most potted plants happen to be of the non-flowering kind. Yet when looking for a plant container in the market, we hardly ask for a plant pot. What we want to have is always a flowerpot.

Flowerpots allow you to grow plants that are to some extent mobile. Unlike plantings in the ground, you can easily reposition plants in flowerpots as and when you like. Another type of flowerpot is the ‘starter pot’ or ‘peat pot’, which is actually a small container made of peat moss.

The most familiar and common type of flowerpots are simple terracotta pots. These flowerpots are fitted with a suitably sized saucer that they sit within, and the pots themselves have a hole in the bottom for facilitating drainage. In elaborate flowerpots with oriental motif glazing, the plant itself often sits in a terracotta pot inserted into the larger, more decorative container. For windowsill plantings you will find ‘window box’, a rectangular box affixed to the outside of the window ledge. You can place flowerpots with plants in the window box, or you can fill it with soil and plant your herbs or flowers directly in the box. If you want to tend individual plants, it is more convenient use flowerpots inside the window box.

But flowerpots are likely to be broken sometime or another. You may drop one, or your kids may discover a lot of fun in breaking one. The question is: what do you do with a broken flowerpot? Will you smash it into shards and use the pieces as drainage aids in other containers? Or, will you prefer to fix it so it’s as good as new or maybe even better, if you like to give a different look to your garden?

If you decide to fix the broken flowerpot, you have to follow these steps depending on the degree and nature of the damage.

In case the clay has cracked but not completely broken, you should wrap rust-proof wire around the pot, just below the rim, and then twist the ends together. If the flowerpot is broken, brush all the soil from the broken pieces, and ensure that the edges are clean and dry.

Apply a waterproof two-part epoxy resin. Follow the direction of the manufacturer during application. Use one that is supposed to work on terracotta, or whatever material your flowerpot is made of. Then press the pieces together and wipe away any excess epoxy.

Next wrap twine around the pot and then tighten the pressure by stuffing rags or newspaper between the pot and the twine. Allow the epoxy to dry thoroughly before adding soil and plants. You will know the exact timing from the directions. Once the epoxy has dried, remove the twine.

You should keep in mind that all terracotta flowerpots require protection from freezing temperatures, and repaired pots are more vulnerable. It is wise to move the flowerpots to a sheltered location for the winter.