My adapted version with black plastic florist's buckets: - take bucket A, & put something in the bottom that bucket B can stand on (I can't now remember what I actually used, but old takeaway containers or bits of plastic piping would do. Anything that'll keep a bit of empty space). - Make one biggish hole (enough to thread some scrap material through) in the bottom of bucket B, then smaller drainage holes in a circle around that. (Ideal tool for this: soldering iron. But, um, prob best not to borrow yr partner's without asking, and/or if you *do* do this, make sure to clean all the burnt plastic off it afterwards, otherwise they get cross. Not that I would know this, obviously. Also it smells a bit but never mind.) - Get a piece of scrap material - old T-shirt, whatever - and thread it through the biggish hole in the bottom of bucket B, so that it's half inside B and half sticking out the bottom. - Stack bucket B inside bucket A. Make sure the piece of fabric reaches all the way into the bottom of the space between the buckets: this is where the water will live. - Fill bucket B up with earth. You want the fabric to run up through the earth, not to sit in a puddle at the bottom, so be careful when you're filling to hold it up and fill around it. - Put plant in bucket B. - Stick lots of water in at intervals. The excess will fall through into the bottom & then be wicked up as desired. - Admire yr tasty tomatoes (or whatever: but it's partic good for tomatoes b/c one tomato plant per bucket is about right, & they're v thirsty plants so often a hassle normally.)
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Date: 2009-05-07 11:48 am (UTC)Complicated self-watering containers: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/home-garden/build-your-own-self-watering-container.html
Two-litre plastic bottle self-watering containers:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Self-Watering-Plant-Container-out-of-a-2-liter-bot/
My adapted version with black plastic florist's buckets:
- take bucket A, & put something in the bottom that bucket B can stand on (I can't now remember what I actually used, but old takeaway containers or bits of plastic piping would do. Anything that'll keep a bit of empty space).
- Make one biggish hole (enough to thread some scrap material through) in the bottom of bucket B, then smaller drainage holes in a circle around that. (Ideal tool for this: soldering iron. But, um, prob best not to borrow yr partner's without asking, and/or if you *do* do this, make sure to clean all the burnt plastic off it afterwards, otherwise they get cross. Not that I would know this, obviously. Also it smells a bit but never mind.)
- Get a piece of scrap material - old T-shirt, whatever - and thread it through the biggish hole in the bottom of bucket B, so that it's half inside B and half sticking out the bottom.
- Stack bucket B inside bucket A. Make sure the piece of fabric reaches all the way into the bottom of the space between the buckets: this is where the water will live.
- Fill bucket B up with earth. You want the fabric to run up through the earth, not to sit in a puddle at the bottom, so be careful when you're filling to hold it up and fill around it.
- Put plant in bucket B.
- Stick lots of water in at intervals. The excess will fall through into the bottom & then be wicked up as desired.
- Admire yr tasty tomatoes (or whatever: but it's partic good for tomatoes b/c one tomato plant per bucket is about right, & they're v thirsty plants so often a hassle normally.)
Hope that makes sense!