They make good herb gardens, these. They also make good alpine pots if you add lots of drainage with stones/large gravel at the bottom and compost with lots if coarse sand and fine gravel through it, making sure the plug hole is kept clear.
I'm sure there will be lots of other suggestions here.

Great for keeping Mint under control too!

Having covered mine in a cement paet mix over 20 years ago, I grow several low growing plants in mine, it is stood on hidden bricks to leave the metal plug hole free of the ground. Why not have a look at what members grow in them on Goypeadia pages such as container garden ideas.

I have 3 shallow sinks. One has a 'garden' of tiny sempervivums mixed with alpines/mossy stones. They have miniaturised themselves over the 15 years since last planting and just need picking over to eject intruders. The other has thyme and self seeding marjoram/sea thrift and clove scented pinks. Self seeded Pasque flower. The deeper butler sink has a mature clipped fringe of variegated ivy and a sunken pot of Heuchera as a centre piece. Or could be a fuchsia. So lots of choice. The very long shallow sink(grandma's slopstone) really needs a clear out. Lavender self seeded/ thrift/ Pasque/moss, raided for Bonsai. Alpines placed in gaps each new season.

Thankyou for all these great ideas. I have 3 so i am certainly going to turn one into a herb garden, one into an alpine garden & i thought i may try growing watercress in the other one.

I have just returned from cyprus & fell in love with all the beautiful shrubs & flowers over there. I was thinking of maybe adding some of them in my garden next year to give it that mediterranean look to it. I am thinking about the water situation that we have here (hose pipe bans) & also the cost of water these days as they grow in a hot country & we didnt once see them being watered. Has anybody tried this out? What plants would work best? I have a few places in the ground to put some shrubs but most of them would have to be grown in containers. Any ideas gratefully recieved.

Hi whoop. but I think I am right in saying 'watercress' needs flowing water to grow, ie. a stream, river etc.