Before the meeting: 

1. Discover how to make a planter by reviewing Reuse a 2-Liter Plastic Bottle to Grow Plants on Scout Life magazine.  
2. Set up meeting space to allow space for Cub Scouts and adult partners to make planters. 
3. Arrange the materials needed for a planter at a place for each Cub Scout and adult partner.  
4. Protect the floor from spilling gravel or potting soil.  
5. Make a sample planter to use for a demonstration.  

During the meeting: 

1. Gather the Cub Scouts and adult partners and have them take a spot where they will make their planter. 
2. Inform Cub Scouts and adult partners that this craft is going to take something that has already been used once and reuse it for something else.  That they will be taking a 2-liter bottle that had a drink in it and turn it into a planter instead of throwing it away.  
3. Walk the Cub Scouts and adult partners through each step of making their planter. 
4. Remove the label from the bottle. If the label doesn’t come off easily, fill the bottle with warm tap water until the water rises above the label. Let stand for 10 or 15 minutes. The label should peel off easily. 
5. Measure four inches down from the plastic bottle cap. Draw a line and cut off the bottle top at this point.
   Place a thin layer of small rocks or gravel in the bottom of the bottle for drainage. Fill halfway with potting soil. Following the instructions on the seed package, plant the seeds. Water just a sprinkle — too much and you’ll drown your plants. 
6. With a pushpin, make several holes in the top of the bottle cap. (It’s easier than it sounds.) Screw cap onto cutoff top of bottle. This is now the lid of your greenhouse bottle. Carefully place on top of the bottle, securing it with a small piece of tape on one side. 
7. Set the bottle in a sunny place and wait for your seeds to sprout. When they get about an inch high, remove the bottle top and let the plants grow until you are ready to transplant outdoors or into another pot. 

Tip: Single-serving-size plastic bottles work equally well, only you can’t get as many plants in them. For these smaller greenhouses, measure down 3 1⁄2 inches from the top instead of 4 inches.