The next time you open a tin of soup or baked beans, think twice before you throw the container in the bin.

Tinned food is a fantastic way to keep your cupboard stocked with quick and easy meal ideas. From chopped tomatoes that make an excellent base for many pasta sauces to various beans, vegetables, and even fruits, almost all of us will have at least one tin in our cupboards at any given time.

But if you're also a keen gardener, did you know you can use these tins to help you grow plants?

Most of us will simply toss the empty tins into the recycling bin once we're finished with them, but according to one gardening expert on social media, they have an important function for any outdoor space.

In a video shared by Joe's Garden on TikTok, the avid gardener said you can actually use your empty tins to make a DIY vertical planter that's great for growing herbs and other small plants.

Joe explained that while the process might seem complicated, it's actually very simple and can be completed in just a couple of hours. First, you need to strip your tins of their labels and then make a series of small holes in the bottom.

Making holes is easiest when done with a drill, but if you don't have one, then you can use a hammer and nail to poke holes in the bottom - but you must be very careful not to injure yourself.

Once the holes are made, give your tin a good wash. This will remove any leftover food residue, but will also let you check that the drainage holes you just made are working, as the water will flow out through them.

Joe then painted his tins a gorgeous shade of light green. He said this step is optional, but he does it because it gives the tin some protection against the sun and stops the bright metal from reflecting sunlight back at you.

Finally, he uses his drill once again to attach the tins to a trellis he has fixed to his garden fence. He said it's important to pick somewhere that is "sunny but also gets a little bit of shade throughout the day".

With his tins fixed to his fence, he fills them with soil and plants "micro-herbs" such as chives and thyme. His final piece of advice is to harvest the herbs regularly to make sure they don't grow too big for their tins, and to keep them well-watered during the hot summer weather.

Commenters on his video were quick to praise his hack as a "fabulous idea", with many saying they'd try it for themselves the next time they had some leftover tins.