Make flower pot irrigation yourself

Irrigation systems for flower pots

During the vacation time is an automatic Irrigation system(€ 99.95 at Amazon *) a good solution for flower pots. On the one hand, there are complete sets in stores or, on the other hand, the possibility of self-construction.
The sets from the trade use a timer and a pump with which the water is pumped from a storage container or the water pipe into the plant pots.
Depending on the quality of the product and the accessories required, costs of around EUR 100 must be expected.

Build an irrigation system yourself

There are various alternatives for such a system:

• Water dispenser plastic bottle
• Water from the bucket
• Water reservoir

Water dispenser plastic bottle

Remove the screw cap from the bottle and fill it with water. Then put the bottle upside down in the soil of the flower pot to be watered. Since the bottle can be quite heavy, it is advisable to fasten it. The bottle is now permanently pouring water into the

Potting soil away. Of course it runs out of the drain hole. To avoid flooding, it is best to place the flower pot in a large container on top of a can or something similar. The flower pot should not stand in the collecting water, the plant would suffer from the resulting waterlogging.

A bucket for vacation watering

Take a 10 or 5 liter bucket of water (it depends on how long you're gone) and drill a few small holes in the bottom. In the holes you attach thin tubes with tape that are long enough to supply the individual flower pots. Now stick terracotta balls with a point in the potting soil. Hang the bucket on a raised place and run the hoses to the individual balls. The water enters the porous material of the ball via the hoses. The water penetrates the potting soil via its tip. There is always only as much water as the ball can hold.

Create a water reservoir for a plant

This requires two buckets of different sizes and a cotton wick. Cut a small hole in the bottom of the large bucket and run the wick through it. Fill the small bucket with water. Now place the big bucket on the little one, the wick should reach into the water. So that nothing tips over, it is advisable to secure both buckets well. Now place the flower pot to be watered in the large bucket.
The piece of wick that extends into the interior of the large bucket is inserted through the bottom of the flower pot into the potting soil. The roots in the potting soil will gradually soak up the moisture from the wet wick.