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Have you seen the self-watering planters?
They are in all the catalogs and plant stores but they usually carry a hefty price tag. They are a wonderful
idea to solve the old problem of thirsty potted plants in the summer.
 
I will be the first to admit that I love planters full of flowers and greenery but I hate watering them almost
everyday to keep them looking good. I have been guilty of killing plants for this very reason.
Now
I have the perfect solution right at my fingertips but guess what???
I'm just too cheap to spend that kind of
money on a plastic planter.
So I got this bright idea.... why not make my own???
...and you can too!
Here is what you need...
a container of your choice, a drill and 1/4 inch bit,
bricks, pvc pipe, galvanized hardware cloth, heavy gage wire panel, potting soil, potting moss, plants of your choice, heavy
duty wire cutters and light weight wire cutters, needle nose plyers and a hacksaw
Follow these easy
steps...
  
1. Place the bricks in the bottom of your container. This area is the reservoir
where water will be placed to self water your plants. You don't want to use bricks that are too big as they will
displace space for water. We placed a smaller brick piece under a bigger piece.
2. Drill a hole in the side
of the container at the same level as the top of your bricks. This hole will drain water to tell you when your reservoir
is full.
3. Cut the heavy gage livestock wire to fit inside your container and rest on the top of the bricks.
We used a scrape livestock panel because we have lots. You can use any type of wire panel sturdy enough to remain ridgid
under the weight of the dirt and plants.
  
4. Place the wire support on top of the bricks. Notice that the reservoir is not quite half the depth
of the container. Be sure to leave enough room for adequate potting soil for healthy root growth.
5. Cut
a section of the hardware mesh. You will need a piece to make a tube that will be placed on the bottom of the containers
and stretch up to above the support structure. My peice is 6X8 inches with the 6 inches being the height to stand
in an 11 inch deep container.
6. Use needle nose pliers to twist the wire ends together. This cylinder
is the wick that will pull water out of the reservoir up into the potting soil.
  
7. Place the wick inside the container so that it rests on the bottom of the reservoir area. Remember
it needs to be tall enough to reach above the support wires.
8. Cut more hardware mesh to create a barrier
to hold the potting soil above the reservoir.
9. Trace and cut a hole for the wick to go through and place this
on top of the bricks and support wire.
  
10. Repeat step 9 using the pvc pipe to create the watering tube. This is how you fill the
reservoir. The pvc pipe needs to be about 4 - 6 inches taller than your container and should be at least 1 1/2 inches
in diameter for filling ease.
11. Fill in the wick with dirt and pack it in tightly. You will have some soil
falling into the reservoir. Thats okay.
  
12. Place enough potting soil to cover the reservoir and provide a good foundation for the plants.
13.
Arrange you plants in the container and fill in with more potting soil.
  
14. Lightly water the top soil around the plants and fill the reservoir until the drain hole overflows.
15. Add moss to the surface, a little art if you like and there you have it!
We
hope you will have as much fun as we did creating your self-watering planter and we would love to see pictures and
comments.
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