The best wicking material
anney
18 years ago
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rain1950
18 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
18 years agoRelated Discussions
wicking material for self watering containers
Comments (5)I started using SWC wicks made from synthetic mop material last year with very good results. I use the same mop Al Tapla recommends for wicking excess water out of containers (Mainstays brand at WalMart). I like them in my bucket SWCs because it's easy to adjust the amount of wicking (even after plant is in place) by adding or removing wicks. This year I want to try using binder clips to temporarily 'cut off' wicks until they're needed. I also like the fact that the soil buckets remain flat on the bottom so it's easy to move them around, work on, sit on the ground without worrying about crushing a wicking cup. I use my SWC's as top watered containers at first (until the plants get well established), and the wicks really help drain excess moisture out at the early stage. Peppers and Eggplants did best last year with 2 wicks, tomatoes in 5 gallon buckets 4, and cucumbers needed 8! (possibly more-or a better wicking mix). Keep up the experiments!...See MoreMaterial to make watering wick for vacation
Comments (6)I used old cotton shirts. The difference in water movement is the thickness of the wick. The shrink wrap certainly helps keep the wicking action where it should be. Hanging coco lined baskets dry out fast and these will buy me at least a day on the small bottle system and at least 2 days on the gallon system. In other on ground containers it will certainly add up to a bigger window. I am sure a glazed pot 3 gallon pot with good water holding soil would last a week. All the small bottles now have feeder hoses like my initial prototype. the materials used were a 12oz water bottle, sleeve from an old cotton shirt, old hose, yogurt container funnel, old blue berry bush container, reusable twist ties and shrink wrap growing a volunteer Roma seedling found in a cold compost pile. The wick is fully in the bottle runs down the side into the soil. Since the other two sit above the wicks were shrink wrapped before reaching the soil. One of my wicks is made from cotton balls wrapped by burlap....See MoreWrights cording/best wick
Comments (7)I prefer masons twine. A 500 ft roll is a few dollars at Lowe's, but make sure to get the synthetic one as they also sell some that are a blend of synthetic and natural fibers. I use 1 length for any pot less than 4", 2 strands for a 4" pot, and 3 strands for a 5" pot. I'm not sure that I really need extra strands in the 4 and 5" pots, but I like to err on the side of caution. I've tried acrylic yarn in the past and found that under my conditions those wicks failed more quickly than the mason twine wicks did. Because everyone's conditions are different, the only way to really know which will work best for you is to try a couple plants with each type of wicking material and see which lasts the longest for you. Be sure to experiment on only a couple plants at a time, and use plants that aren't near and dear to you heart. Mark...See MoreBest practices in wicking: still confused!
Comments (27)Oh thanks Joanne! And Begonia I also enjoyed reading what I call "the back story!" It is interesting to read these things. But I think you are doing a little better than you realize with your plants. You have reached out for information and that is the first step. We are here to help you achieve your goal---nice plants! Like all of us,,,,,you are impatient for that spectacular flush of bloom time after time. Hey we all want that. BUT that is not the reality. I think you are finding that out if you take these posts seriously. And I think you are. Start out slooooooow. Get all the knowledge you can. Love those plants and forgive them for not being picture perfect. Remember, when you bought them they were not lovingly hand raised (the way you and I do from leaves), t hey started out on a production line and finished in a dark box on the way to the store and unpacked and plopped on the shelf. Then you and I found them. Now they have to readjust and regroup to get on a normal growing schedule and THERE is where we say "oh that is not the bloom it had when I bought it". That could be true. But this poor plant has to reschedule itself. Like an adopted dog from the pound. He doesn't know the rules of your house. He has to regroup and adapt. I think your plants will do well, keep posting, keep asking, and keep growing! It will all make sense one day! I call that my "AHA moment"! I have them frequently! You will also! Here is something no one has brought up yet about blooms. I am starting with a leaf so I can explain it correctly. Plant a leaf, pot the baby, it starts to grow. It puts out leaves in a rosette pattern. When the time is right (based on fertilizer, care, etc) flower buds form under the TOP set of leaves. (remember this is a very young violet putting up its first blooms.) Fast forward. Flowers now die, you trim off flower stalks. Plant is still putting out leaf rosettes. More flower buds are forming. POINT! flowers will never again form where the first flowers came from. Under that first set of leaves. NEVER AGAIN. 2nd set of flowers are forming under that NEXT set of leaves! And they bloom and as that is happening leaves continue to form and,,,,,,,,, POINT! flowers will never again form where the second flowers came from. Under that second set of leaves. NEVER AGAIN. 3rd set of flowers are forming under the NEXT set of leaves! And the process goes on and on and on. I wanted you to know this blooming process because eventually if you never take off outer leaves or don't turn your violets every so often so they don't "lean" or reach toward the window or center of the light tubes your violet will keep growing UPward and you will suddenly find yourself with a possibly necky plant. (topic for another thread!) That is why we eventually trim off the outer leaves (and of course plant them) which gives the next set of leaves a way to have room to flatten and be the "first row". And light gets way in there. And more blooms come! But never will flowers ever form again from the same "row" they were in prior. I hope I explained this correctly. Kinda like where to babies come from? Well now you know where do flowers come from? Hope I didn't confuse you with all of this. Rosie...See Moreanney
18 years agogaraj
18 years agoleira
18 years agoanney
18 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
18 years agodrasaid
18 years agoanney
18 years agogeol
18 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
18 years agoanney
18 years agorjs55555
14 years agogreenkalki_gmail_com
12 years agodunfordrobertpeter
8 years agochamaegardener (Z5) Northeast Illinois
2 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
2 years agochamaegardener (Z5) Northeast Illinois
2 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
2 years agochamaegardener (Z5) Northeast Illinois
2 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
2 years agojaceymae
last year
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