Here is the thing that surprises most gardeners: the garden, of all places, has a plastic problem of its own. In Australia, most pots and labels are made from PP5 plastic that can be recycled over and over — and yet only around 8% of it ever is. The black ones are the real trouble, invisible to the sensors at recycling plants and sent straight to landfill.

I didn’t write this to make anyone feel bad about the stack of pots by the shed. We all have that stack. I wrote it because once you can see the problem clearly, the small changes start to feel worth making — and the simplest fix of all, reusing what we already have, is free and always available.

It’s written for gardeners everywhere. Someone reading this is sowing right now while someone else is mulching down for winter, so take what fits your season and leave the rest for later. The Australian schemes and figures are here because that’s where I garden — but the habits travel, wherever you are in the world.

What You’ll Learn in This E-Book:

🌱  Why the garden is quietly full of plastic — and the real hope inside that

♻️  Pots and trays — how to reuse hard, recycle the right ones, and find a take-back scheme

📰  Make your own — newspaper pots, soil blocks, and repurposing what’s already in the kitchen

🏷️  Labels — handsome, lasting alternatives to plastic markers

🌍  Compost and growing media — going peat-free, making your own, sharing a bag

🪴  Around the rest of the garden — twine, netting, mulch and water, done gently

🌾  Buy less, grow more — saving seed, swapping plants, taking cuttings

🗓️  A note on your season — the same habit, north or south, summer or winter

💚  Your one swap — the single change that stops being an effort and becomes how you garden

This e-book is a gentle, practical guide for anyone who wants to garden with less plastic — without guilt, perfectionism, or a being lectured!

Who Is This For?

✅  Gardeners who’ve noticed the pots and trays piling up and want to use less

✅  Beginners wanting clear, doable swaps without the jargon

✅  Experienced growers after the swaps that are actually worth it

✅  Anyone gardening anywhere in the world — the habits travel, season to season

✅  Schools, community gardens, councils and groups wanting a shareable, generous resource

Why Less Plastic Matters:

✔️  Most plant pots are recyclable PP5 — yet only around 8% is ever recycled

✔️  Black pots can’t be sorted at recycling plants, so most go to landfill

✔️  Reusing what you already have is free, and always available

✔️  Small swaps, repeated, add up — the Plastic Free July principle of small steps, big difference

✔️  A garden that takes less can still give back more

Why This Ebook Is Free:

The work that pays — the book, the workshops, the design work — is what makes it possible to put resources like this out into my community with no price on it. When someone pre-orders The Productive Garden Companion or books a workshop, some of what they pay funds the free ebook, the one that goes up with no price on it at all. That’s the model I’m building deliberately: a practice where the paid work holds up the generous work. Share this ebook widely. That’s what it’s here for.

Get Your Copy Today!

📖  Instant digital download — no cost, no catch

📧  Add to cart and check out as normal — Squarespace will email the file to you

💚  Keep it on your phone, print it, or share it with a fellow gardener

🌍  Made in Australia, written for gardeners everywhere

👉  Download the free ebook now and start with one swap.

Made for Plastic Free July

This little guide was written for Plastic Free July — the global movement, founded right here in Australia, that runs on a single idea: small steps, big difference. You can take the free pledge at plasticfreejuly.org, then come back and choose your one swap.

Want to go deeper?

If you’d like to close the loop at home, my Compost for Beautiful, Productive Gardens ebook is a natural next step — turning the scraps and so-called waste of a garden back into life. And if this guide was useful, I’d love to keep sharing seasonal notes and ideas with you; that’s what landing in your inbox is for.

Pre-order The Productive Garden Companion — out with Murdoch Books, September 2026.