MG soils tend to hold too much water when used by themselves, combine that with a container with no drainage and your asking for trouble. I would take the plants and all the soil out and drill some holes, then mix the soil with wood chips or shredded bark and some real wood charcoal for added drainage. Do not use charcoal briquettes, some types have added chemical in them and the natural charcoal is various sizes which will also increase drainage.

That your barrel hoops are loose is a good sign the wood is not rotting. When hoops have done that I have done the basic wrap thick wire or braided cable and tighten with pliers. I'm sure there are better and better looking solutions.The thick "copper" wire sold by Bonsai nurserys could work."Copper" because it's mostly aluminum,coated with copper, wire.Not very strong but your not asking it to do much more than hold the staves together.

I've had the "fake" 1/2 whiskey barrel as a container pond for 3 years. You will need a liner for a real whiskey barrel as they leak. Garden Ridge will have them, but not sure if they have the liners. With the plants in, and spilling over the side, plus the plants around the base of the barrel, you don't see much of the container itself, so it really still has "charm". It would be best if you can situate it in a place where it gets some sun if you want plants. Mine gets maybe 3 hours of sun. I have Golden Sweet Flag (Acorus), a standard white rain lily, water lettuce and bloody dock (all in pots) in mine. You can get all of those at HD starting pretty soon. I also threw a few stems of Anacharis (an aquarium plant from any fish store)which just free floats under the water - it's good for oxygenation for the fish. I have 3 fan tail goldfish in mine, which overwinter in a 20 or so gallon tupperware type container in the house. The plants will feed on the dissolved fish waste. I do a 50% water change in mine about twice during the warm months. You will likely get a severe algae bloom soon after you set it up, nasty looking green water for a week or 2, but it will go away by itself as the pond becomes "balanced" and the fish won't mind it. I have a small pump for aeration and the "water sound". The discharge tube just shoots straight up to the surface of the water, just breaking the surface. Most pumps have an adjustment so you can adjust the flow. Set the pump on some bricks so it will not be directly sitting on the bottom of the pond to keep debris that settle on the bottom from getting into the intake. All my plants survived this winter. I will be removing the plants soon to cut off alot of the roots which have escaped the pots, and also to clean out fallen leaves that have settle on the bottom. Don't want to completely tear it down and clean it, as that upsets the balance and it will take longer to rebalance itself. I like the goldfish because you can really see them hanging out just under the surface. I feed them 3-4 times a week - they get plenty of natural food from the pond. Maybe they will get too big some day for this pond, but it's going to take awhile, so I'll enjoy while they can stay, and find them a bigger home if they get too big for this one. You will really enjoy it - I hope you set one up. Don't get discouraged, be patient, as it takes a couple of months for it to settle in, balance itself, and then, very little maintenance.

I have an empty half whiskey barrel, and I would love to have peonies! But I worry that they won’t winter well. I only have a patio, so I must do container gardening.