How to Make a Self Watering Container found on UrbanOrganicGardener, my urban gardening blog.

Summary
In my urban gardens, I have my vegetables planted in self watering containers built from recycled materials. When I first started container gardening, I knew that it could get to be expensive having to buy all of the containers. I also knew that I didn’t want to use too many resources, so wasn’t going to buy the cheap plastic ones.

After doing some research, I came across the EarthBox design, started to do some more digging and came across some DIY articles. That’s how I came up with following design of a self watering container.

It uses nearly all recycled materials that are easily accessible. The additional costs are small and should run you less than $5.00.

Tools and materials needed:
5 gallon bucket. You can get these from local florists, delis, supermarkets or if you are lucky find them lying on the streets.

12″ x 12″ Vinyl tile. Go to your local hardware store or tile and flooring store. Ask them for samples or anything that they are throwing away.

“L” Copper pipe. This is the main expense of the project. Ten feet of “L” copper pipe can run from $25 upwards of $45 depending on where you go. You’ll have to cut the pipe into pieces that fit your containers.

Small plastic container. This could be anything along the lines of a  butter container, coin cup from a casino or half pound or pound deli container.

Other materials. Marker, razor, scissors, drill with 1/4″ bit and duct tape.

How to make and assemble your self watering container:
Making the insert. Trace the top outline of the bucket onto the vinyl tile. Inside of that circle, flip the container over and trace the bottom outline. This will give you a smaller circle within a larger circle. Cut in between until the tile is able to rest on top of the deli container in the bucket.

Cutting the insert. Place the deli container top down in the middle of the vinyl tile and trace the outline. Draw a “T” in the middle and then connect the lines to form a diamond. Use your razor blade to cut out the diamond. The tile should now be able to rest on top of the deli container. This will allow the soil to wick the water up to the roots.

Drill holes in the deli container. Using your drill with the 1/4″, drill holes all around the deli container. This allows the water to come in contact with the soil in the deli container and keep the plant hydrated.

Cut hole for pipe in tile. Trace the top of the pipe on the outer edge of the tile insert. Cut out the hole for the pipe.

Assemble it all. Put the deli container in the bucket, put the tile over it and insert the pipe. If it doesn’t fit perfect, fix it up and secure it with duct tape. Hold the bucket up to the light and mark a point that is just below the insert. Drill a 1/4″ at that point. This will make sure that you don’t overfill the bucket because it will spill out of the hole.