Constructing Your Very Own Self-Watering Planter Box

Most of us love growing greens that are used in making fresh salad, herbs and even tomatoes. However, if you are planning to grow your veggies over the high summer, this would mean everyday watering. This might be problematic especially if you are planning a family getaway. A few years back, people would depend on neighbours who at times would remember to water your plants and other times forget or ignore them completely. Your crops would frequently wither if this occurred.

Merits of self-watering planters

There are self-watering planters that can serve the plants in your absence. With self-watering planters, the last thing you would have to worry about during that vacation is your veggies. Planter boxes are amazing for they can keep rabbits or other critters from interfering with your greens. You can go for weeks without having to raise even a single finger to water those plants. You will be able to enjoy your greens until frost by barely doing anything for the crops. To build your own self-watering planter, your focus ought to be on the perforated drain pipe.

The self-watering process

The other term for self-watering planter is sub irrigated planters, long for SIPS. The plants get to sip the water any time they feel like, hence the name SIPS. You can purchase a perforated drain pipe that is quite affordable. At the bottom of it, the planter has a fabric sleeve. For circulation of air and water wicking up to your plants, you will need to fill up the drain pipe reservoirs.

With this, your plants will consistently stay moist since the planter will be watering them from below. This assures you of little evaporation if any, and the plants will not necessarily need water all the time. Vinyl tubing drains any water that is not needed. So far, there are various self-irrigated planters that are available commercially at outdoor furniture and furnishing stores. However, you can choose to build one on your own.

Building a self-watering planter

The first thing to do is to come up with a place that has full access to the sun for a minimum of six hours. Nevertheless, if the planter is placed against a wall, it will still do even with less sun since the heat will be reflected. To enable you harvest from either side, your planter can be 3ft to 4ft wide. Your planter should be then lined with a rubber membrane that is ‘fish safe’.

This will assure your planter’s wood of longevity for chemicals will leach to neither the soil nor your food. These fish safe liners are readily available in different materials and thicknesses at your garden centres, home centres and online retailers.

If your garden is raised, take caution not to use garden soil since it is heavy. Use light soil for it to retain the necessary moisture. This soil will not compact itself or become waterlogged. You can also opt to purchase pot soil that is specially made for these planters. Finally, to ensure good results, you will need to keep the weeds down and slow the rate at which evaporation takes place by mulching the containers.

Well, if you find it tedious to build your own self-watering planter box, why not stop by Timber Living Outdoors and buy yourself one instead?