Besides landscapes and furniture, many gardens feature various decor: water features, sundials, fountains and bird baths. An old bird bath can be found in many gardens and besides refreshing it to attract birds or turning it into a water source for your pets, you can also use it as a planter, it’s basically a planter on a tall stand.
First of all, let’s prep your old bird bath for changes. Clean and wash it, remove all the water and perhaps moss or something else on top. If you want, you may paint the bird bath, whitewashed it or paint it some bright colors: blue, pink, yellow or others to match the garden design. Let it dry and apply another coat of paint and that’s it. As soon as your bird bath dries, add soil to use it as a planter (depending on the plants you are using). How to style a bird bath? Let’s find out.
Bird Bath Planters
Planting in a bird bath is practically the same as planting in a usual pot: place some soil and choose the plants you like and that match your garden style. Consider the depth of your bird bath: some of them are quite shallow and you should choose plants and blooms with not very deep roots. If your bird bath can be moved, you can style any part of your space with it: your porch, your entrance or backyard and you will be able to hide it from harsh weather conditions.
A Succulent Garden
The most popular idea is planting succulents as a bird bath is a large bowl that can accommodate various succulents of different colors and you can create gorgeous arrangements. Try echeverias or various shades, haworthias, sedums and some cascading types, too, for more eye-catchiness. Add pebbles or faux stone on top to imitate a natural landscape with rocks. This succulent bird bath can be placed anywhere: in the garden, in a flower bed or even on your porch.
Green echeverias in a carved stone bird bath is a pretty decoration for outdoors, it looks lovely and catchy.
A bold succulent arrangement including various species: echeverias, haworthias, cascading sedums, is a fantastic idea.
A whitewashed bird bath styled with pebbles, colorful purple, red, yellow succulents and groundcovers.
A beautiful mini landscape with succulents and rocks is a lovely decoration for a wild-looking garden.
The blue bird bath turned into a planter on stand, with bright groudncovers, echeverias of various kinds.
Add color painting your bird bath, for example, bold blue, and rock succulents and pebbles on top.
Fab oversized green echeverias are always a nice fit for a bird bath, these modern plants juxtapose the vintage bird bath.
A vintage stone repurposed planter decorated with pebbles, with strings of pearls, echeverias of various sizes and colors.
A lovely scenery with moss, pebbles, green and purple echeverias and some smaller greenery is a cool decoration for outdoors.
Heavily planted colored echeverias and some cascading touches are amazing to finish off a garden.
A light blue upcycled planter done with echeverias and pebbles is a cool and stylish addition to any of your outdoor spaces.
A tall succulent garden styled with large echeverias and with greenery is a gorgeous decoration for any outdoor space.
A dusty blue planter used for growing succulents and greenery can be placed anywhere - in garden beds, on porches or anywhere else.
A pretty scenery done with moss, with green and purple succulents and leaves plus a metal sphere decoration on top.
A vintage concrete repurposed planter done with greenery, cascading greenery, colored echeverias and porcelain mushroms to make the landscape forest-like.
A concrete bird bath with rocks and green echeverias is a stylish solution for a garden, the bath is vintage but the landscape is modern.
A shabby chic piece with a little rock garden, with pebbles, rocks, small echeverias and a snail figurine is a cool idea.
A mini black bird bath with a small rock garden, with succulents, leaves and some cascading touches is adorable for any garden.
A Flower Pot
Some bold blooms can be planted in a bird bath, too, and you can create a lovely arrangements with various flowers, from simple primulas that feel Alpine, to bright pansies of various colors. Such a bird bath can be a nice centerpiece for every garden bed adding color and interest to it.
A large converted garden display with greenery, primulas, moss and some woodland plants is a perfect idea if you want a forest feel to the space.
A vintage transformed container with greenery and pale miller, pink, yellow and fuchsia blooms will be a focal point in your garden.
A cobalt blue bird bath contrasts the bright pink primula blooms and bring more color to the garden.
Finish off an old piece with jaw-dropping purple pansies and infuse your outdoor space with color.
A stone bird bath done with green and red blooming groundcovers plus leaves is a lovely piece to make the garden nook more beautiful.
A sophisticated garden feature showing off greenery, marigolds, purple pansies and some leaves is adorable.
A tan patterned bird bath showing off fuchsia, volet blooms and foliage is a gorgeous decoration to add to your garden.
Greenery and red blooms make up a bold and catchy arrangement in a bird bath adding color and texture.
A gorgeous bright decoration of a vintage garden feature with hostas and fuchsia-colored primulas is absolutely adorable.
A large vintage upcycled planter done with yellow and green plants, with pansies planted at the base is a unique decor feature.
A vintage oasis finished off with greenery and pink blooms is a delicate addition to any garden.
A vintage bird bath with white and pink primula blooms is a beautiful and sophisticated idea.
A Woodland Planter
Greenery is also a lovely idea for a bird bath but it should be eye-catchy, with plenty of texture and interest, and it will work no worse than a floral bird bath. Get ferns and pebbles to create a woodland-inspired look, add some porcelain mushrooms for a forest feel, rock foliage and plants of various shades for a catchy non-floral look. Bright groundcovers can be also a nice solution for planting, groundcovers are low-maintenance and they will cover the whole bird bath quickly. Place such a bird bath in lush greenery, in shrubs or trees to make it a perfect but eye-catchy fit.
Even without flowers your arrangement may look fantastic, here you can see hosta plants and some cascading greenery.
Dark and green foliage will make your arrangement spectacular even without any blooms at all.
A bird bath as an alternative to a planter on a stand, with dark foliage and greenery is a cool idea for a non-flower garden.
An upcycled planter with dark echeverias and some greenery is a cool centerpiece in this bird bath.
A small fairy garden with greenery and colorful porcelain mushrooms is a fun and whimsical addition to a wild garden.
A woodland scenery with pebbles and fern is a cool idea for a wild-looking or forest-inspired garden.
A blue bird bath styled with various types of greenery, succulents, small blooms and faux mushrooms for a woodland touch.
Bright groundcovers like basket-of-gold are a cool idea for a bird bath, they are easy to grow and they easily fill in the whole space.
A Fairy Garden
A fairy garden is also a lovely idea for styling an old bird bath. You will need some figurines, a playhouse, perhaps a fence, a ladder, a fountain, all of a small scale to create a fairy garden. Add greenery or flowers to make the landscape look natural. The good point is that fairy gardens, even if they include some plants, are very low-maintenance, and if you don’t use plants, it’s even easier to take care of. Your kids if any or your guests will spend time exploring it.
A lovely fairy garden with a house, a fence, greenery and succulents, pebbles and bold pink rocks for decor.
A pretty fairy garden styled with greenery and succulents, with a fairy house, a mini bird bath and blooms.
A lovely fairy garden with a fairy house, greenery, mushrooms, bunny and bird figurines and some groundcovers.
A Mini Garden
A mini garden in a bird bath is also a thing to make use of a bird bath. This way you create a mini landscape in a bath, so here you can create a rock garden with succulents, a path and greenery on both sides, shrubs and a gazing ball in the center. Create your garden but in miniature, adding features that you like. Get inspired!
A cute mini garden in a bird bath, with purple blooms, a succulent, greenery, a path with pebbles and a mushroom.
A creative bird bath styled as a flower, with pebbles, gravel, groundcovers and a gazing ball is a mini rock garden.