Fall Garden Sep. 1

The fall gardens are looking pretty good, it's cooling off and raining a little more now.

Gorgeous as usual. As always, love your pictures!

Hi:
I am also doing the SFG in containers. Those look smaller than mine though...what size are they? Are those plastic liter bottoms? It looks cool!

Janice

Josh, can you tell me more about that bottom photo? It looks absolutely gorgeous, and I would love to, ahem, borrow your idea! (Unless you've copyrighted it! )

martha wrote:Josh, can you tell me more about that bottom photo?

Hey, Martha!

If you spent less time on vacation and more time reading the forum, you'd know all about Josh's wall of flowers!

https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/outside-the-box-f40/wall-of-flowers-t2552.htm

https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/outside-the-box-f40/recycled-self-watering-containers-for-plants-t2318.htm

sorry I didn't post sooner.

boffer for posting the link to the instructions to the self-watering soda bottle container.

The lettuce seems to really like the containers and they are growing really good,the cabbage too. The cucumber vine died,maybe because it was a transplant and it might have done better if I had just planted the seeds in the container.

One really important thing to remember if you make the self watering soda bottle pots,is when you put the mel's mix in the top part,make sure you pack it tightly into the neck of the bottle. If you don't the mix will come out into the bottom piece,and make sure you push the top neck piece all the way down into the bottom piece so that it touches the bottom,sometimes I have to trim the bottom piece a little so that the top piece will fit all the way down into the bottom.

Hey Josh,

What do you think about using a small piece of netting, crop cloth, cheese cloth, or nylon stockings over the hole and held in place with a rubber band? Would that make the soil packing and bottle fit less critical?

How's school going so far?

Good idea! That would solve the problem boffer!

Josh, I've been wondering how long your bottles last. Did they make it all summer through two heat waves? Does the water in the bottom eventually get "icky" and have to be replaced? Did the water attract insects?

How well do you think these would work for indoor winter gardens? Are they stable enough to sit alone when filled with top-heavy plants?

I love this idea, but we don't drink sodas. I'll have all winter to scrounge from friends to try it next year, but I'd really like to try one or two this winter.

You are so inspirational.

ander the bottles last a long time,about 4 years ago my Jr. master gardener group made some of them and took cuttings and rooted them and then sold them for money for our group,my mom had some extras she planted flowers in. They have been outside since 4 years ago and they are still just as good as when we made them.

As for the water in them getting icky,I only had a couple do that, and it was because the top piece was not pushed all the way down and the soil mix leaked out into the water,I washed them out and redid them and they are ok now. Boffer had a good idea for helping to keep the soil from leaking out into the water too. To help keep the water from getting icky also I waited till the bottom piece was completely out of water before adding more water. If you are planting something that doesn't like a lot of water then just don't add water to the bottom as much or as often.

There wasn't any problem for me with insects.

My mom used them in the house for house plants too and they worked really good for that too.