self watering flower buckets

[chilli_grower]

Ok, I have been doing some googling, and I am going to make a self watering flower bucket (using 2 buckets).

However, could someone please tell me exactly what is stopping the compost sucking up all of the water immediately and drowning!? Might be a silly question?

Also, what is a good material to use as the wicking basket between the 2 flower buckets?

Any tips welcomed...

Thank you

[GreenTricky]

I made alot of these last years, never had a problem with it being oversaturated, I think it just draws water up at the rate the plant draws it from the soil. I used capillary matting I got off ebay and cut into long strips that hung from down the top bucket down into the bottom bucket. The top bucket rested on two tent begs stuck horizontally through the bottom bucket about a third of the way up.

[Two_Sheds]

It's the plant's roots that draw up the water, and they only take as much as they need. Capillary action.

Don't leave pots sitting in water, that's the way to sodden sour compost and drowned plants.

how to water seedlings - YouTube

[Bigmallly]

When the inner pot is inside the outer pot, the bottom of the inner pot will be x cms higher due to the wick basket. As TS says, the plant will only draw up what it needs, if you feed from the top then obviously any excess will drain through to the reservoir. Don't forget to put overflow holes in your outer bucket 2 cms below the bottom of your inner pot. This then ensures that the wick basket is in the reservoir but the inner pot is not, once again as TS says they are not standing in water.......Hope this makes sense, it did to me when I was writing it.......

[chilli_grower]

I understand.

Is it best to use a wick basket, i.e filled with compost, which will act as the wick.

Or better to have some sort of wick material hanging down from inner pot? Thus meaning that the compost is not in direct contact with the water reservoir at all?

Thank you

[Bigmallly]

That's right CG, I use 3" plant pots with a few holes in the side as wick baskets filled with good absorption cloths, like dishcloths. The main thing is that your inner pot is sat about 2cms above the water in the reservoir pot, hence the overflow hole/s in the outer pot. I also have floats in the tubes so I can see at a glance if they need filling. Imagine a fishing float.

[chilli_grower]

ok gotcha.

I saw a few videos that actually show the wick basket filled with compost, but I didn't like the look of that. Possible potential for rot I thought?

And I assume the inner pot, just sits directly on top of the 3" plant pot?

[Marie99]

Hi Just searching for Self watering flower buckets and came across this thread,

Chilli grower, Did you try and were the self watering flower buckets successful?

Bigmally,

If I got a flower bucket and put gravel in the bottom around a small potting pot in the middle, put holes and compost in the potting pot with the 2nd pot on top with hole for compost, would this work? I have got that I would need to outer holes in the bottom pot.

Would I need the gravel or could I just prop the 2dn pot up?

Do I then need a pipe to go through both buckets to the bottom in which to water?

I like your 'floats in the tubes' Idea

Im trying to improvise with bits I have lying around.

ooo Im going potty now thinking about it, its late

[mothhawk]

Marie, I found this video easy to follow, and the pots were easy to make and worked very well. I grew outdoor tomatoes in them outside last year and only had to top up the reservoir every third or fourth day, occasionally adding liquid seaweed or comfrey juice as fertiliser.

[mothhawk]

I didn't have a mesh pond pot so I used an ordinary plastic 3" plant pot, and I filled it with gravel, not compost, then filled the inner bucket with compost.

[Marie99]

Thanks Mothhawk