How to Use Broken Terracotta Pots in the Garden—Including Martha's Genius Method

Terracotta pots are a beautiful, rustic way to house flowers, vegetables, and herbs. But their fragile nature leaves them vulnerable to cracks and breaks. If you have any damaged terracotta pots lying around your home, don't toss them. Consider reusing them in the garden instead.

Broken terracotta pots have many uses outdoors. They can provide shelter for beneficial toads and frogs, help fill in planters and pots, and even work as a water source for birds and butterflies. Ahead, we're sharing the many ways to repurpose broken terracotta pots in your garden—including one of Martha's favorite methods.

Create Decorative Garden Edging

Broken terracotta pots can be upcycled into decorative garden edging. Jim Lapic, master gardener with the Penn State Master Gardener Program, uses broken terracotta pots and places them along the sides of his garden mounds. He notes that the broken pieces help catch any sliding soil, while acting as a focal point for some of the flowers he grows, such as yarrow and marigolds.

Prevent Blocked Drainage Holes

One of Martha's favorite ways to repurpose broken terracotta pots is by placing them in the bottom of her planters to keep drainage holes clear of clumps of dirt or vegetation. Blocked drainage holes can impede water flow, potentially causing root rot and other fungal issues.

Lapic also places broken terracotta pieces inside his planters to fill in empty spaces, which allows you to use less soil. "I often have large pots on my deck that are filled with flowers that have shallow roots," he explains. And so, because the flowers will never need the extra soil anyway, he avoids filling the entire pot with compost and soil by adding in the broken pot pieces.

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Give Pollinators a Water Source

Fresh water can be hard for pollinators to access, especially during summer. If the broken pot fragments you have are curved enough, consider sticking them in the ground in a shaded area and filling them with water for bees and butterflies. These watering holes might even attract other beneficial garden animals, says Lapic. "I once had a toad that decided one of my mini watering holes was better suited as his personal bathtub."

Create a Mini Rock Garden 

Another way to reuse broken terracotta pieces is to stack them inside a large container to form tiered planting pockets filled with alpine plants, sedums, or miniature cacti. After that, you can add a few decorative stones for texture, thereby creating a mini version of a sprawling rock garden to place on your deck, patio, or any other outdoor space.

"The shards’ warm tones pair beautifully with rugged rocks, creating a miniature mountain scene that becomes even more charming over time as you add to it," says Samantha-Jane Agbontaen, gardener and founder at House Designer. It’s a creative way to turn damaged pots into a charming focal point for small spaces.

Provide Shelter for Toads and Frogs

Frogs and toads are great natural allies to have in a garden. They eat crickets, flies, ants, mealworms, and a litany of other insects. But toads and frogs are also prey animals for owls, hawks, skunks, opossums, and raccoons. Even domesticated cats might try to devour them.

To protect them, Lapic suggests taking a broken pot (one that still has a bottom) and flipping it over, then placing it in a shaded part of your garden and submerging it a few inches into the ground. Make sure the pot has an opening on one or more sides to serve as an entryway for the animals. This will protect the toads and frogs from extreme heat and any predators.

Make Mulch to Deter Slugs and Snails

Smaller pieces of broken terracotta pots can act as a natural mulch, helping deter pests, such as slugs and snails. "The rough texture is uncomfortable for pests to crawl over, offering a natural, chemical-free deterrent," says Agbontaen. To make this mulch, crush broken terracotta pieces into smaller chunky shards and scatter them around snail and slug-vulnerable plants, including lettuces, hostas, or strawberries.