The great 2024 wicking bucket/pot experiments

[21hens-incharge]

TSC has food grade buckets for a lot less... They did last year. I have bought food grade from Lowes. Possibly Harbor Freight. Not sure about Home Depot. I think they were about a $ more than a standard bucket.

Good to know! I never thought to.look at TSC or Lowes. My HD doesn't have them in store.

 

[Sally PB]

I also keep a shallow large diameter waterer with pebbles and a piece of sandstone for the bees.

12 food grade buckets

Check with an ice cream or donut shop. They get fillings in 5 gallon, food grade buckets. I buy mine for $1.50 each, and that includes the lid. Sometimes the lid is sold separately in a store.

 

[Nomadicus]

$5.99 at TSC for red or white buckets. They have lids too. Lids are an add on and priced separately.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Check with an ice cream or donut shop. They get fillings in 5 gallon, food grade buckets. I buy mine for $1.50 each, and that includes the lid. Sometimes the lid is sold separately in a store.

Mine are stingy. They either won't sell them or they want $10 each.
It's why my chicken feed is in HD buckets.

 

[21hens-incharge]

$5.99 at TSC for red or white buckets. They have lids too. Lids are an add on and priced separately.

I have to get feed tomorrow so will definitely look for them. Thanks!

 

[Nomadicus]

Having been certified in landscape irrigation in a previous life I want to do a strawberry garden that is vertical using low volume drip. I did learn a valuable lesson using drip once. The system was soundly designed. The calculation as to how long the system needed to run was off by some bit. It was put into a field of young growing palm trees to be used for new landscapes once they and grown a few years. My customer called one day and said his palm nursery was flooded. Yep. It was about a foot deep. Each emitter only put out a 1/2 gallon or so an hour. Lots of emitters and lots of hours...... but that was not the real reason for the flood. The land was in FL and was sandy. There was also a layer of clay hardpan not bar below the surface that prevented the moisture from soaking on down.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Having been certified in landscape irrigation in a previous life I want to do a strawberry garden that is vertical using low volume drip. I did learn a valuable lesson using drip once. The system was soundly designed. The calculation as to how long the system needed to run was off by some bit. It was put into a field of young growing palm trees to be used for new landscapes once they and grown a few years. My customer called one day and said his palm nursery was flooded. Yep. It was about a foot deep. Each emitter only put out a 1/2 gallon or so an hour. Lots of emitters and lots of hours...... but that was not the real reason for the flood. The land was in FL and was sandy. There was also a layer of clay hardpan not bar below the surface that prevented the moisture from soaking on down.

How did it turn out? Did the palms survive?

 

[Nomadicus]

How did it turn out? Did the palms survive?

Yes it all turned out fine. They had to find a way to divert excess water from just heavy rains. I think they must have got a good deal on the property no knowing about the hardpan subsoil. 20 acres of palms is worth a lot of $'s once they are grown to a more mature size on the FL east coast.

 

[Nomadicus]

I'd really like to study for a way to use clean disease free soil and circulation to also grow tomatoes and peppers. Both are so susceptible to disease it should be worth the cost of setting it up. I think soil grown tastes better than hydroponic. Hydroponic is more disease free. The way you are planning is interesting for those two reasons too.

 

[21hens-incharge]

I'd really like to study for a way to use clean disease free soil and circulation to also grow tomatoes and peppers. Both are so susceptible to disease it should be worth the cost of setting it up. I think soil grown tastes better than hydroponic. Hydroponic is more disease free. The way you are planning is interesting for those two reasons too.

It is! It gives so much more control hopefully.
Each one that I set up in a different way will be documented to share here. I also plan to.post throughout the growing season.
It will be a busy summer at work with 2 huge orders coming so I will make Sundays the update day.
Of course if anything weird happens to the plants in between I will be sure to post it.