all the functions of a water butt

Ideas please..
I have a few plastic water butts that are about 4' tall and 3' diam positioned around my garden. They are gravity fed from my water collection system. I dip into the top with a bucket or can for localised watering.
They work very well as water sources but they have other excellent qualities too- visited regularly, thermal mass, vertical structure, near water(!)
Any suggestions or ideas ? plants in or around?

thanks

Hi Cesca....I've added your post to 'rainwater catchment'. I thought you must be collecting rainwater Your set up to water the garden sounds great..do you have pictures?

As a vertical support I use water butts to grow things up- mainly a passionflower in my garden, though anything that appreciates the thermal mass would work I guess.

I also have a roof built over one of my water containers (that is in the most shady part of the garden) and grow moss on the roof (for crafts and things). The space under the (raised) containers is full of bits of wood and rocks as an amphibian hideout (so wildlife habitat).

Open-topped containers can grow water plants, think watercress or even regular lettuce on a floating raft. One of my containers that is buried in the ground houses frogs- not on purpose, they just moved in. You could possibly house fish in big enough containers.

thanks for adding to rainwater catchment, not quite upto speed with this forum stuff!
love the idea of floating rafts for eg lettuce, like hydroponic system; um nutrients?, I'll chuck a few bits of comfrey in there periodically?
Passiflora doesn't cope here, but a climber that is not too vigorous that would appreciate the temp stability is a definite.
I've been trying to get hold of some cyperus longus thought it could be held to one side so I can still dip in. Supposedly native to UK but I'm not familiar with it.
Do you have a pic of your moss roof? I'm intrigued!
Thanks

Ooooh in Leicester you're not far from me!

I don't add nutrients to my water-butts, bits get in from the roof- leaves and things, and that's good enough for lettuce! I clean a good amount of sludge out every few years!

I shall try and get you a photo of the moss-roof- it is made of a sheet of plywood with plastic sheeting on to 'waterproof' it, supported by old scaffold planks. There's some old, rather rotten bits of wood- not attached, just up there to provide purchase for bits of soil and the moss. Moss sits on top of it all, and is covered in netting and held down with bricks so that it doesn't blow off. Nothing fancy! Not a 'real' green roof or anything.