Bottle Tree

If you like Bottle Tree, perhaps you'll like Tomato in a Bottle, too: [link]


If you’re anything like me (you don’t have to admit this) you have wine bottle that will be, at some point, empty.

Here’s something to do if you’re really bored, feeling creative, and want to break something.

1. Take empty wine bottle, wash, rinse and set aside.
2. Find a small bucket.
3. Find another wine bottle or two, preferably colored.
4. Smash bottles on concrete. (This is best done by holding it out sideways and dropping it from about four feet in the air.)
5. With gloves, pick up shards of glass and place in bucket. A broom and dustpan may also come in handy.
6. Smash glass shards with the end of the broom handle until most of them are about peanut-sized. The sturdier parts of the bottle, such as the neck and base, probably won’t cooperate. Just dig these out and throw them in your neighbor’s yard.
7. Add some water to the bucket and slosh it around. This will sort the pulverized glass according to size. You don’t want the sand in the bottle (or maybe you do!)
8. Still wearing those gloves, put half of the glass in the bottle.
9. Find a little tree growing in your yard. It’s spring, and unless you live in some sort of denatured city compound, they’ll be there. Look near big maple trees, it’s a sure bet.
10. Dig this tree up, making sure you get all of the roots. Pulling it up won’t work — you’ll need a teaspoon or proper digging utensil.
11. Wash off the dirt and drop the tree in the bottle with the glass shards. You may have to fiddle with it a bit to get it to stand upright.
12. Put the rest of the glass in the bottle, or at least enough to cover up the roots.
13. Add water.
14. Put in sunny place.
15. Enjoy.


There are enough minerals floating around in tap water to keep your tree healthy, but a pinch of sugar may help it overcome the shock of transplant. Just don’t get too carried away (we’re talking about 20 grains of sugar here)

Soon, your tree will outgrow the bottle and push its way up through the top. You can leave it like this, or you can trim the tree with some long hospital scissors to keep it inside.

NOTE: I’m not responsible for your bloody hands. This is broken glass… you should know better. Nor am I responsible for your arrest and subsequent fine for digging up a tree on public land. Either don’t do it, or don’t get caught.

NOTE 2: Safety glass works quite well, too. And it breaks into little cubes. You can get this from your neighbor's car window. Or from the hardware store. Your call.)

NOTE 3: I’m testing one made with plastic shreds, too, but I’m worried that the plastic compounds might kill the tree. I’ll post results later.

Also: Wow... there are a lot of people who have added this to their favorites! You are free to use this image in whatever way you please (non-commercial), and I'd love to see what you do with it... send me a message!