4 Ways You Could Be Reusing Tic Tac Containers For Plants At Home

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For more than 50 years, Tic Tac has been a staple of the grocery checkout line and purses, with its distinct rattle that is recognizable across generations. Customers can still buy the brand's signature intense mint flavors, but now, the candy also is available in a variety of fruit flavors. What happens, though, when you shake out that last Tic Tac? Instead of tossing the tiny container, opt for the eco-friendly, budget-conscious route by repurposing it in your garden. Turn it into a miniature plant ecosystem, use it to organize your seeds, and more. Once you get started, you may come up with more creative ideas, giving you an excuse to buy more Tic Tacs on your next grocery run.

Before you start on any of these projects, go ahead If you don't have Goo Gone or a similar adhesive remover, rubbing alcohol or nail polish remover should also effectively remove the Tic Tac label. Soak a paper towel or cotton ball with rubbing alcohol or polish remover and place that onto the label for at least 15 minutes. Next, check to make sure the label has softened before carefully removing it. Any remaining adhesive can be wiped away with alcohol and a sponge. 

Turn a Tic Tac box into a mini paludarium, a wetland ecosystem that combines aquatic and terrestrial plants, water, and soil. Use tweezers, funnels, and droppers to fill the container with aqua soil like Fluval's plant and shrimp stratum (which will not cloud up the water like regular soil would), sand, pebbles, and — above the water line — a small amount of soil. Add aquatic plants like duckweed (Lemna minor), floating crystalwort (Riccia fluitans), or dwarf baby tears (Hemianthus callitrichoides). Plants used in a terrarium also would be suitable. 

If you've planted water garden plants in your pond and are struggling to keep them in place, repurpose an empty Tic Tac box to stabilize them. First, use scissors or a box cutter to remove the top and bottom of the container. Put the plant through the container, with the roots emerging from the bottom and the upper stems sticking out of the top. Tie the container to something at or near the bottom of the pond, like a rock or a section of the water pump, to keep the plants from freely floating around the pond.

Store-bought seed packaging contains helpful information, but once those paper envelopes are ripped open, seeds can easily fall out or the packaging can get wet if they're stored outside. To avoid these issues, save several Tic Tac boxes to keep your seeds organized until you're ready to plant them. Wrap an adhesive label around the container and label it accordingly, along with any vital planting details, before carefully filling the box with seeds. Not only will the boxes keep the seeds dry and safe, they also will serve as convenient dispensers.

If you love propagating plants but don't have enough space for all the little jars of stem cuttings, this is where old Tic Tac containers come in handy. This won't work for propagations that need soil, but it will be ideal for starting any of these plants that can grow roots in water. If the cutting is top heavy, first add a layer of small pebbles to the bottom of the box to weigh it down before adding water and the plant. Since the boxes are tiny, change out the water frequently and make sure the plant always has water.