I have done that tray thing before- when I've left for a week.

I suppose I could do that, but I thought perhaps these automatic watering systems may actually be better. The 2 that I'm deciding between are: green genius and this other one made by smart homes- which seems the same but waters 14, instead of 10 plants.

Malfunction? Flooding indoors? Eeek! Now you've started a whole new paranoia in my head- I didn't need to hear that!

Do these gadgets really leak or over water? Anyone with experience using them out here?

I will be doing the same thing next month. I'll be gone about 12 days as well. I also have a cat that a friend is going to come and feed and I don't totally trust her to water my plants so, this is what I am going to do.

1. Keep all the blinds closed to keep the heat down. (It's not dark in here with the blinds closed.... just no direct sun)

2.Turn the air conditioner on about 23C/74F ish to keep the temps at a dull roar.

3. Move plants that like a lot of water away from the windows and put them on the kitchen table. This way my friend will know exactly which plants I want her to keep an eye on. (av's, streps, ivy, Jasmine and my orchid....)

4. Water everything really well the night before I leave. Soak them for 20 minutes or more too.

5. Set up my auto-cat feeder so she doesn't have to come over but every 3 1/2 days.

6. Cross my fingers and pray that I have plants to return to:-)

Should be ok as many of my plants are Hoyas and plants that can take being dried out. Pothos, snake plants, succulents, monstra should all be fine.

This is my plan! I'm hoping that it works but it's a risk that we all have to take once in a while:-)
Diane

Diane- Are you sure that any plant can survive 12 days without watering?

Other than my calathea and some succulents and maybe the coleus, I can't imagine which of my plants can survive more than 5 days w/o watering. My hibs- I'm having to water them every other day- now that it's getting hot. But maybe that's coz I have them in small 3" clay pots- so obviously they dry up faster.

Do you really think I don't need one of those automatic waterers? I've been having to water most of my plants almost double of what I used to in the winter and in August, I'm assuming it will be worse.

I just wonder how good/bad these products are. Will they really cause a flood? I tried to do a search for them on here but so far, haven't come across anyone complaining of any malfunctions- whew!

this time, my cat and dog are going to friend's houses to stay, instead of having someone come over- it's just too inconvenient for them (the friends, that is). This is my 3rd long trip this year and I can't keep asking my friends to go out of their way for me. I feel terrible. They'll be avoiding me next.

Most of my plants are in plastic pots and I try to only water once a week. Some do need more water this time of year because of the heat .... that is why I'll be leaving them on the table for my friend to water and keep an eye on.

My Hoyas (and the others I mentioned above)should be just fine! They probalby will enjoy the break from being 1/2 drowned before I leave. (I'm hoping anyway;-)

In return for watering plants and feeding my cat, I get to water her plants and feed her cats while she is gone for a month.... She's getting the better end of this deal as I have the auto-feeder for the cat and as she has 2 cats, auto feeding isn't an option! I'll HAVE to go over every day:-(

Diane

Maybe you should think about potting them up a size and into plastic pots that don't need to be watered so often?

Just another though...
Diane

Never heard of the watering system you are mentioning here so I dare not comment! I'll just take the chance that they will all live without watering for 12 days.

Ya, I was thinking of potting them up one size actually.

My favorite plants- the hibs, gardenias and jasmines, (that makes about 8 plants right there) will all come to work and my aunt will take care of them while I'm gone. She used to grow hibs so will know what to do.

That would really leave about 10 odd plants at home and most of them aren't heavy water drinkers or big sun loving plants. Maybe I could just keep them in trays of water? But I really think an automatic dripper/ waterer maybe better for the plant than a tray of water beneath.

I can't close my curtains because it would be very DARK (curtains are thick and dark) inside. But I will move everything away from the windows.

I'm going to go look around soon to see what's available at the local stores- it's also a worthwhile experiment because if those automatic things work, it would be a life saver in the long run as I travel very frequently.

Nota, what type of self-waterer do you mean? If you go to my site, and check out citrus, I've got water-drips that do great in winter (in the gh)
Will u look at the pics and tell me if that's the same thing you're talking about?
Cactus and succulents will do fine in windows w/o watering. Thin leaf plants will be a problem..I'd move them away from windows, and place in tub or on a table.
How many plants are we talking? Toni

Hmmm. I thought I just posted but it doesn't appear to be here- hope I didn't end up posting on a wrong thread. Ooops lol.

Anyway, Toni, I saw your pictures and while doing searches on this site, I found some inputs regarding drip watering from you.

Those aren't what I was talking about but I'm open to those as well. I was thinking more along the lines of a Green Genius, Oasis (althought it's a bit above my budget) or this one from Smart Homes. They all water several plants at one time so I thought it would possibly be more economical than getting individual drip waterers for each pot. All the ones like yours that I've seen are usually at least $7-10 each.

Yours looks semi-home made though- how did you do it? I think I remember seeing some post of yours regarding buying some twist caps or something- can you tell me a bit more about that?

How long does the water last? Do you think it's okay to keep the soil constantly wet? Of course, I would only do this for vacations, not permanently.

I will be moving about 8 picky plants to my aunt's while I'm gone. That would leave no more than 10-15 at home. The thin leaved ones are mostly my jasmines.
They will be going to my aunts, as will the hibiscuses. So at least I won't worry about losing my favorite plants.

I wish I had a friend who needed constant pet or plant sitting too, so that we could depend on each other- but so far, seems, I'm the only one in constant need of help, never the other way around. So other than buying gifts for them during my holidays, there's not much else I can give (could give money but I feel sooo weird about offering money to close friends and they would never accept anyway).

I have tried the gizmo which attaches to a 2 liter water bottle. It works well on some plants and then empties all at once on others. I assume soil type is responsible for the differenct outcomes. I do not believe it would work on any plant for 2 weeks.

I did not see this idea posted so here goes. The idea comes from a plant person in Alaska. This person says he successfully leaves his plants alone for up to 2 months at a time. The idea is to make individual terrariums around each plant using the thin plastic from dry cleaners. (I would first test this technique on plants with different moisture requirements before leaving all my plants to it! Then if all goes well -) Water all plants well then remove any that are in direct sunlight. Use one plastic bag per plant. Place plant inside bag, fill it with air then make bag airtight. Plant should look like it is in the middle of a balloon. The cleaners plastic supposidly breaths but does not allow moisture to easily escape. Water, from the soil, should bead up on the plastic during the day and rain down on the plant at night. That's the idea...Good Luck!!!

Hi guys!!
anybody please help me with some wise suggestions about what to do to take care for my 3 house plants during a 1 month long vacation around Dec-Jan. I have heared about some time-released/ slow -releaseing gel/water crystals. Does that work to keep the soil moist (but not drown my plants' roots)?
Another question is that if nothing works for my plants do u guys know about any nursury that takes plants for about a month and give them back to me after I come back? How much do they charge?

Amy, I've never heard of the gel slow-release crystals, but I've read when people go away for a time one thing to do is set plants in a tub w/a couple inches of water..Don't let plant sit in water directly. You want to prop the plant up, out of water..
BTW, what type of plants do you have? If you're growing cactus, you can let be as long as a month..Just give it a hearty watering before you leave for vacation. Tropicals, and sub-tropicals are a different story.
It also depends on pot size..If your plants are growing in containers 14"+, all you'd need to do is set plants away from windows a few feet. Again, after a good watering.

As for nurseries taking in plants, I'm sure each charge different fees..Heck, some places won't take ppl's plants for fear of bringing in pests. You're lucky you live near a nusery that's willing to do it, but then on the negative side, you have to worry they don't have plant bugs either. Hopefully, they place plants in an isolated area. I wouldn't think it'd be too expensive..or shouldn't be anyway..It's not like caring for a pet where they have to feed and water daily. Toni

Amy, since you only have 3 plants- why don't you give them to a friend or family member to take care of during vacation?

I did pretty okay while I was gone for two weeks- I gave some plants to my co worker to take care of. The rest stayed at home and I invested in one of those automatic, battery operated watering systems- it's called Green Genius.

For the most part it worked okay- only lost my mints. I gotta be honest- my plants were quite far from lush and green when I returned but at least they were alive. And, it was my first time using that thing so I didn't quite know how much water would come out, etc etc. It was also in the dead middle of summer so they really wanted a lot of water. You'll be gone right during winter, so their watering need will be significantly less.

One month seems like a long time for me to leave a plant in the bath tub- so I really think you should try and find a friend/family/ co worker who can possibly keep these plants for you for the month. If not, I'd go with either a nursery or an autmatic watering system (mine cost about $50 but I go away at least twice a year so it's worth it to me)- which ever works out more cost effective for you.

There are also several other automatic watering devices available out there in several price ranges. Toni for example makes her own (for her citrus I think if I remember correctly). Perhaps she can brief you better about it. Just do a search of 'automatic plant waterer' or something along those lines- that's what I did. I saw several products but since I needed to water about 15 of them- some seemed too costly. Since you have only 3 plants, I think you have more options than I did.

Here is a link for a site that sells a few of what I was talking about. I've never used any from that site but I remember looking at them. The drip watering ones seemed good but they are for individual plants and I couldn't afford to buy 15 of them.

Here is a link that might be useful: Automatic Watering Options

Nota you're right, a friend/relative would be the best choice. 3 plants shouldn't be an inconvience to anyone.
I got my drip waterer from Carol Wright..they were something like 3.99 for 12..U had to save 12oz bottles and they screwed on. Just fill w/water and a little water drips out. Toni

if you run a length of rope in one end of a bucket/bottle/container of water and the other end into the plant, it's like slow irrigation. i've used this method both indoors and outdoors and it works for me. (it has to be that nice soft cotton type rope, nylon won't do it). when you're done with this set up, hang your rope pieces up to dry and then store them away for another time. you have to judge the size of the container to the size of the plant pot, you want the water container higher/taller.

be well,
maryanne

Maryanne, wow, your post brought back memories..I remember reading about doing just what you said back in the 80's..in fact, they used to sell pots w/pieces or rope and worked just like you described.
BTW, I bought a stand similiar to what you're talking about..It has 7 holders, and in each holder is a piece of rope..Toni

Use aqua globes or aqua drip kit

For the last 3 years, I have successfully- regrouped all my my plants -for 2 week periods- on a long foldable picnic table, covered with newspapers for protection, and which I placed next to a big northside window - the drapes stay open. I then make a terrarium-like closed tent using very clear garbage bags which I slit down their sides, overlap them next to each other slightly, using scotch tape to close the gaps and fix the edges to the underside of the table. Takes a few minutes, but it worked very well. Next time, I'm going to try for 2 1/2 weeks. NOTE: (A rall schefflera got bagged alone).