How to make a self-watering garden container from an old paint bucket.
A self watering garden container is simply a bucket with a water chamber and a platform which supports the earth in which the plant (hopefully a vegetable !!) will grow. Water from the chamber automatically ‘wicks’ up to the plant and, since the earth is covered with plastic - no significant evaporation takes place and the plant grows quickly in a warm, perfectly watered environment.
The components of a self-watering garden container are shown in the picture below. You will
need:
- A 5 gallon paint bucket with lid
- A drill
- A jig saw (although a box cutter knife will work fine).
- A length of French Drain piping (Lowes or Home Depot)
- A piece of plastic sheet (an old compost bag is fine).
- 4 zip ties
- An 18 inch length of 1.5 inch PVC pipe
To make the self-watering container, proceed as follows:
- Use the jig saw / knife to cut out the center of the bucket’s lid about 1 inch from the outside edge.
- Cut a hole in the center you’ve just removed from the lid slightly less in diameter than the French Drain pipe.
- Drill lots of small holes in the lid (for aeration).
- Make a hole in the lid 1.6 inches in diameter to accommodate the PVC pipe.
- Attach a 6 inch length of French Drain to the lid you’ve cut & drilled using the zip ties (you’ll need to drill 4 holes in the upper edge of the French Drain to accomplish this).
- Drill 4 holes in the side of the bucket 4 inches from the base.
- Assemble the components as per the picture below
- Fill with earth (a combination of 1 part compost to 3 parts peat moss) to the top of the bucket and secure the plastic sheet over the earth with the edge of the lid.
- Plant your vegetable(s)
- Fill the water chamber via the pipe
- Watch your plant grow !