Wrapping a potted plant with a burlap is an easy and cost-effective way to add a rustic touch to your indoor and outdoor potted plants. All you need is some burlap, a potted plant, some good scissors, twine, and a couple of minutes of your time.
Here’s how to wrap a potted plant with burlap:
- Gather your materials.
- Measure the burlap.
- Cut the burlap.
- Wrap your pot.
- Keep the burlap in place.
- Decorate your burlap pot.
Wrapping your pots in burlap is an easy DIY project recommended for all skill levels. The rest of this article will discuss how to wrap your potted plant in burlap, some tips to make your project even more unique, and the other ways to use burlap in your garden.
1. Gather Your Materials
The first step to wrapping a potted plant with burlap is to get all of your materials in order.
You’ll need the following materials:
- Some potted plants
- Burlap
- Scissors
- A pen or pencil for marking
- A tape measure
- Some twine
If you want to elevate your wrapped burlap pot look, you can also add the following optional materials:
- Ribbons
- Raffia
- Other decorative items
Most of your supplies are available from your favorite craft store, minus the potted plant. However, many nurseries also carry burlap and twine, so you could actually get all of your supplies in one place!
If you’re only planning on doing one small plant, you won’t need much burlap or twine. However, if you plan on doing some larger pots, or you want to do all of the potted plants in your home, you’ll need a lot more burlap.
The exact amount of burlap and twine you’ll need will depend on a few factors, including:
- The height of the pot: You’ll want to cover the whole container your plant is in, so knowing how tall your pot is will help estimate the amount of burlap you’ll need.
- The circumference of the pot: The wider your pots are, the more burlap you’ll need to go around the pot. This also plays into how much twine you’ll need.
- The number of pots: More pots mean more burlap and twine.
If I were striving for absolute accuracy, I would go ahead and calculate the surface area of a curved cylinder for each pot to determine precisely how much burlap I need. However, this is a craft project, and it doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful.
A reasonable estimate is just to multiply the circumference by the height and add a few inches (5.08+ cm) for extra measure. There are about 1,300 square inches (8,387.08 square cm) in a yard of fabric (give or take how wide the material is).
With this method, a yard will cover about twelve 4-inch (10.16 cm) pots.
Most places sell burlap in precut lengths, but other places sell it by the roll, so you can specify exactly how much you want. Always overestimate the amount you need so you don’t run out – any leftover burlap can be used in other projects.
As for the potted plants, any size potted plant will do. One thing to keep in mind is to make sure that if the bottom of the pot has holes in it (which is best for drainage), you have a saucer or catch plate under the pot so the burlap doesn’t get soaked and stained when you water your plant.
Finally, when cutting the burlap, use the sharpest scissors you can find to ensure crisp, clean edges. Fabric scissors are great for this project.
2. Measure the Burlap
Now that you have your supplies, it’s time to measure out your burlap. If you’re working with a couple different sizes of pots, start with the larger ones first to make sure you have enough burlap to cover all of the pots. I find that it’s easiest to measure out the burlap physically for this project, so you know precisely what your pot will look like before you cut.
Then, follow these steps:
- Take your pot and saucer (if the bottom of the pot has holes) and put them on top of a larger piece of burlap.
- Take your measuring tape (or another measuring device) and measure the height of the pot.
- Hold that measurement.
- With the plant on the burlap, measure the height distance from the base of the plant. This will ensure you have enough burlap to cover the pot. However, add a couple more inches (5.08+ cm) to that measurement for a nicer, fuller look.
- With your marking tool, mark this measurement on four corners of your plant pot.
- Connect the dots to make a square.
3. Cut the Burlap
Now that you have your burlap square measured, you can cut out that square using your sharp scissors.
Burlap tends to fray, so make sure you take crisp, straight cuts if you want to avoid the fray.
If you’re feeling crafty, you can add some flair to your cut. Use zig-zag scissors or cut a wavy line to give your cut burlap an added fun touch.
4. Wrap Your Pot
Now that your burlap square has been measured and cut, it’s time to actually do the wrapping.
Follow these easy steps:
- Fold the burlap around your pot, making sure that the fabric covers all of the pot and that it keeps the saucer firmly in place.
- Take a piece of twine and wrap it around the center of the pot, over the burlap.
- When you’re happy with the length of twine (think about whether or not you want to tie a bow or if a simple knot is fine), cut the cord and tie it in place.
5. Keep the Burlap in Place
In most cases, if you tie the twine tight enough, you’ll find it does a great job of keeping the burlap on the pot. However, you might consider adding some small sewing pins to secure the hold further if you notice the burlap looks loose.
If your burlap is sliding around too much, you can also use a small amount of PVA glue or hot glue to keep the burlap on the pot. For larger pots, you can use small skewers to pin the burlap into the soil of the pot.
6. Decorate Your Burlap Pot
While your pot looks great with just the burlap and twine look, you can use a variety of ribbons, bows, raffia, and other accessories to spruce up your pot. If you want to add a splash of color to your burlap, you can use acrylic paints on the burlap.
For a unique approach to an herb garden, attach little chalkboard tags to the burlap twine with the name of each herb.
Other Uses for Burlap in the Garden
While I focused on using burlap to decorate potted plants, burlap is also a helpful ally in protecting your plants in the garden as well. So, if you have leftover burlap, or you accidentally bought too much, don’t fret! There are several ways you can use the burlap in your garden.
I’ll go over these ways below.
Protective Covering
When winter temperatures start blowing in, you can create a protective covering for your plants. Simply use the burlap to make a tent for your plants and stake it into the group to keep it in place. The burlap will keep the cold wind out of sensitive plants and protect the plant from frostbite when temperatures plunge.
Weed Blocker
Burlap can also be used in garden beds as a weed blocker, as it prevents weed seeds from penetrating the soil. Additionally, burlap keeps soil moist, which helps with seed germination. While it eventually degrades and loses its effectiveness over time, it’s an excellent first defense at a low price.
Transport Garden Debris
Burlap bags are also great for storing and transporting leaves and other garden debris to compost or burn piles. They’re more sturdy than paper bags and more environmentally friendly than plastic bags.
Final Thoughts
Burlap is a fun way to add a rustic look to your indoor and outdoor plant pots. Hopefully, this article on how to wrap a potted plant with burlap helps you bring a level of charm to your pots and inspires you to use burlap for all of your gardening needs.
