I was in a creative mood so I decided to build my very own self watering container. My container is an abbreviated version of the one offered by Josh Mandel.
To make one self watering container I used two plastic totes and a sturdy, plastic colander. One tote will be cut down to act as a water reservoir, the other tote will hold soil and the colander will be used as a wicking chamber to draw water from the reservoir into the soil above.
Cut one tote down to the height of the colander, then drill small 1/4" holes for soil aeration all over the bottom of the tote. After that, in the center of the tote, cut an opening for the colander.
Place the colander inside the unaltered tote and then place the altered tote on top, bottom side up. Secure the colander to the altered tote, I used a couple of zip ties.
Drill a large hole through the outer tote and inner tote to act as both the overflow hole and as the fill hole.
When you add soil to the container make sure it is firmly packed into the colander. The soil in the colander will connect the water in the reservoir to the soil chamber above it, so make this link as strong as possible. It helps to pre-moisten the soil before you add it to the container.
Save the other half of the tote and use it as a hot cap/cloche when needed.
Voila! Self watering container plus mini green house all for under $11.
I have a couple extra bell pepper seedlings I could plant, but I have more than enough in other containers so I bought some broccoli seedlings at the Union Square Green Market. The container could use more soil, but I am not buying anymore this year so that's that.
2 - 18 Gallon Plastic Totes: $8.40
Plastic Colander: $2.17
Broccoli Green Sprouting Calabrese: $2.00
Running Total: $138.65
Update: I made a another one, read about it here: DIY Self Watering Container From a Water Cooler Bottle.
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5 comments:
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!