Name: Melissa E. Keyes St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands Zone 11
They look really nice. You water each individually? I want to hook all mine together so I can just turn on the hose at one end! Then even put the hose on a timer. Lazy me!
I saw (somewhere?) where somebody put the buckets close together and ran a soaker hose through holes near the top of the buckets. I might have to try that eventually.
I so agree! I spend an hour every other day watering all my bucket plants! But the plants are doing just as good this year as they did last year in them! I like the soaker hose and timer idea a lot! :-)
Name: Stormy Valley Forge Pa I Love MAM ~ So Happy Together
That is so interesting Tami. I'm going to go back and read all of these threads. Has your area been low in rain this year? Do you notice any significant differences in the plants growing them this way?
It has been extremely dry here. We have been getting a few rain showers lately but not enough to help much. The buckets have a drain tube in the side that drains any excess water. Yes I notice a huge difference. I can't water my plants in the ground enough in this Georgia heat and they really suffer. My buckets don't skip a beat.
Name: Stormy Valley Forge Pa I Love MAM ~ So Happy Together
I was reading the construction threads. The different configurations are so interesting. I'll have to get DSO to read them tomorrow. This is the type of thing he really enjoys. My plants are getting extremely heat stressed throughout the day.
Stormy - The one bad thing about the ebuckets is that you can't miss watering them when they need it. The plants will perish in short order if that happens. Some folks have set up drip systems in their ebuckets. Something I hope to be able to do in the future.
I have seen other folks growing their contained plants in small baby pools or they create a shallow pond or bog area where they just sit their potted plants right in the water. Usually shallow water so the plants always stay hydrated. Of course, some plants are more prone to root rot, so that might not work with all plants.
Name: Stormy Valley Forge Pa I Love MAM ~ So Happy Together
Tami, Thanks for that tip. The baby pool is a good idea. Right now I have a pretty big vegetable growing set up all containerized. The only food that I have growing in the ground is corn and some pole beans.. Even with morning and evening waterings, the tomatoes and peppers are stressed in the hot afternoons. I am getting a lot of curl and roll on the tomato leaves.
You wouldn't use Ebuckets to grow root veggies would you? I have mine in large wooden boxes and barrel halves. I'm talking about beets, parsnips, onions, garlic and leeks.
Short on growing space? Make an "eBucket!" View illustrated instructions to turn 5-gallon buckets into self-watering containers for veggies & plants. Construct in 5 minutes - plant in 10!
Mine did great. Of course I use a coir mixed in with potting soil so they are not too wet.