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How to make a unique but very easy DIY plant stand out of a wire tomato cage and an old stainless steel milk strainer.

Are you looking for an unusual but totally doable plant stand for your front porch?

It’s as easy as picking up some twine, some kind of pot for a plant and a wire tomato cage from the home improvement store.

full pot of purple flowers in DIY plant stand

Why use a tomato cage and old milk strainer?

Well, the tomato cage was an easy choice. I used it for a similar project 9 years ago (way before it was a thing), so I knew it would make a great plant stand.

The milk strainer was a spur-of-the-moment decision.

I actually found the old, stainless steel milk strainer at a flea market 8 years ago and I had big plans to repurpose it into a hanging light.

Obviously that never happened so it sat in the basement collecting dust.

During our recent move, and a huge purge, I decided it was time to let it go. After putting it in the sell pile though, inspiration hit.

Why not make it into a planter?

It is deep and has drainage holes in the bottom. Actually it makes a great planter pot.

What can I use for an outdoor plant stand?

The possibilities are really endless.

I used a vintage milk strainer and tomato cage for my DIY outdoor planter but you could use a bucket or even a regular flowerpot.

Supplies

wire tomato cage
pot for plant (I used a vintage stainless steel milk strainer)
spray paint
cutting tool (I used an oscillating multi-tool)
sisal or jute twine
scissors
hot glue gun

Making a DIY plant stand

When I made a plant stand with a tomato cage all those years ago you couldn’t find colors so I ended up spray painting it.

Nowadays though you can find any color. I picked up a black one and once I knew the milk strainer, erm flower pot, would fit, I went to work cutting the legs off with a cutting tool.

using a cutting tool to cut wire legs off of tomato cage

Next I turned my attention to the milk strainer that would become a flower pot.

Painting the “flower pot”

I did another quick fit in the stand before it got a thorough cleaning with the hose.

After the milk strainer was dry I turned it upside down and spray painted the outside only in a matte black.

Creating the plant stand

While the paint was drying I started working on wrapping the twine around the rings on the tomato cage.

You really don’t have to do this step but I wanted to add a bit of contrasting texture to my plant stand.

It’s easy to do but be warned…it does take a while to wrap all 3 rings with the twine. I had a few burned fingertips from the hot glue but it was definitely worth it.

I chose sisal for this project, because I liked the color, but it was really stiff, which made it harder to work with. If you want to wrap your cage, a more flexible choice would be jute twine.

Wrapping the twine couldn’t be easier.

I would just wrap it around a few times and then put a bead of hot glue on the twine. Then I’d wrap it around a few more times, 4 or 5 was usually the most I went before using more hot glue.

As I wrapped the twine I made sure to pull the twine to make it nice and tight.

wrapping twine around ring on tomato cage

I did this for each ring, making sure to start and stop the twine in the same place for each ring so I could hide the end points in the back of my plant stand.

So, let me share a quick tip that I learned.

I started wrapping the tomato cage with this big ball of twine. It didn’t take long for it to get tangled, causing a lot of frustration and a lot of time.

supplies to create a DIY tomato cage plant stand

I needed a way to keep the twine neat and untangled so I decided to wrap it around something, kind of like thread on a spool.

I searched my decor closet and found a short candle holder.

twine wrapped around a wooden candle holder

Quick Tip: When doing a project with twine, use something like a candle holder to keep it neat and free from tangles.

Perfect for a temporary spool.

Once that was taken care of the project moved along quickly. Well, more quickly.

process of wrapping twine around rings on tomato cage

Once the planter stand is finished I filled the newly painted “flower pot” with soil and a pretty plant.

I popped it into the stand put it on our front porch.

I love it! A unique outdoor plant stand 8 years in the making, and a great way to repurpose old farm equipment.

purple flowers planted in plant stand on front porch

More DIY Planter Ideas

Yield: 1 unique plant stand