The great 2024 wicking bucket/pot experiments

[Sally PB]

They are free range weeds

How to convince weeds to "stay in their run...?"

Just think! If we could "train" weeds to stay out of the garden, to respect the fence....!

 

[21hens-incharge]

How to convince weeds to "stay in their run...?"

Just think! If we could "train" weeds to stay out of the garden, to respect the fence....!

If only my flock of free range weeds were smaller....
I do encourage their predators to help themselves.

Note to self make yard sign that says "This yard will never be weed free, but the weeds in this yard are always free!"

 

[gtaus]

Yeesh that's expensive!

I cannot devote much time to seeking out the alternative sources and thought my bucket purchase was expensive. I almost abandoned the idea altogether. The bucket cost of mine wasn't bad but the shipping nearly doubled the cost.

I prefer the cheap/free options. I am looking into bucket sources near me for additional buckets for next year in case these work spectacularly.

I hope you noticed that it was a pack of 10 inserts for $134.00, not just one bucket setup. So, that would cost you about $14.00 per bucket insert.

I bought some items from the Dollar Tree to make my equivalent of those bucket inserts. After over 30 minutes of cutting and drilling, I was not completely happy with my DIY results and did not bother to post anything. I wasted about $4.00 worth of materials, but it was my experiment.

Of course, I too prefer the cheap/free options for my DIY bucket. I only wanted to mention those ready-made bucket insert kits because, for a commercial operation, time is money and you would not want to pay someone an hour of labor per bucket to drill all those holes, cut the pipes, etc... when a ready to use option for $14.00 is available from Amazon.

On the other hand, I have salvaged those aluminum pipes for fill tubes, have a bunch of used plastic containers for the bottom to hold water, and got some more free 5-gallon buckets from Harbor Freight. I might have everything I need to make a DIY grow bucket similar to yours and, if successful, I will post some pictures.

While this thread is largely to document progress of this first group I like getting the input from others and looking at implementing those ideas.

Sorry if you feel your thread is getting off track. I know that can happen over many pages with comments, suggestions, and input from others. It would not hurt to post an update to redirect the conversation the way you want it to go. Sometimes that is needed. I am here to learn from your experiment. Thanks.

 

[21hens-incharge]

I hope you noticed that it was a pack of 10 inserts for $134.00, not just one bucket setup. So, that would cost you about $14.00 per bucket insert.

I bought some items from the Dollar Tree to make my equivalent of those bucket inserts. After over 30 minutes of cutting and drilling, I was not completely happy with my DIY results and did not bother to post anything. I wasted about $4.00 worth of materials, but it was my experiment.

Of course, I too prefer the cheap/free options for my DIY bucket. I only wanted to mention those ready-made bucket insert kits because, for a commercial operation, time is money and you would not want to pay someone an hour of labor per bucket to drill all those holes, cut the pipes, etc... when a ready to use option for $14.00 is available from Amazon.

On the other hand, I have salvaged those aluminum pipes for fill tubes, have a bunch of used plastic containers for the bottom to hold water, and got some more free 5-gallon buckets from Harbor Freight. I might have everything I need to make a DIY grow bucket similar to yours and, if successful, I will post some pictures.



Sorry if you feel your thread is getting off track. I know that can happen over many pages with comments, suggestions, and input from others. It would not hurt to post an update to redirect the conversation the way you want it to go. Sometimes that is needed. I am here to learn from your experiment. Thanks.

Yup saw it was a 10 pack.
For me mine is only a success if it produces more in value than it cost to make.

I am not worried about it getting off topic. I am enjoying all the ideas actually.

 

[gtaus]

Yup saw it was a 10 pack.
For me mine is only a success if it produces more in value than it cost to make.

I agree. I think I have salvaged enough free and used plastics and pipes to build my own 5-gallon grow buckets for next to nothing out of pocket.

Along those lines, I made about five or six new 4X4 foot pallet wood raised beds this year for less than $2.00 each. Of course, all the savings is due to free pallets and not considering the time it takes to disassemble the pallets and rebuild them into raised beds.

But the 5-gallon bucket approach is interesting to me because people with limited space can still grow something in a very small space. And I like the whole idea of the water reservoir in the bucket. I really like my elevated sub-irrigated planters, but they are rather large at 2X4 feet and cannot be easily moved once filled. The 5-gallon buckets certainly have advantages.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Ease of moving as well as fitting small spaces is a huge advantage for city folk with limited land.

That was actually what sparked my interest. I like my raised beds a lot but there is unused areas where buckets can easily fit but be moved for fence maintenance or to gain more sun.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Everything is going strong even in our very high temps.

Peppers are getting bigger. Last filled the water a week ago.


The potatoes are getting HUGE. It gives me hope for a decent amount.


The self watering Petunias are filling in the tub nicely.

 

[gtaus]

Peppers are getting bigger. Last filled the water a week ago.

Looking really good. My peppers are not even half that size yet.

Worse yet, something has eaten the top off of some of my pepper plants. I suspect squirrels are getting into the raised beds. We have rabbits around the yard, but I have never seen any in my raised beds which are 16 inches high. Lots of squirrel damage this year, unfortunately.

Have you calculated how much water is in your bottom reservoir? Just wondering if water usage is part of your experiment this year. Or maybe just how often you have to refill the reservoir is your goal?

FWIW, I have a sub-irrigated 2X4 foot elevated planter that holds 15 gallons of water. I plant beans in it. In an average summer with normal rainfall, I have to refill the bean planter once a month. If it does not rain, then I have to refill it about once a week. It's a real time and labor saver when it comes to watering. I have a water level indicator in my fill tube which shows me when it is time to refill the reservoir. That's a big help for me.

 

[21hens-incharge]

The reservoir holds just 1 gallon so not much really.

I have some bunny activity this year. In all the years past they left my veggies alone. The squirrels really like my strawberries unfortunately.
When I am refilling the buckets I am lifting/tilting a few and hear nothing slosh. I figure there's just a cup or two left.

I did add fertilizer when I planted but nothing additional yet. Just a very small handful of 10-10-10 was put in 7-8" down.

I have jalapenos in my half barrels that are doing very well too. That area is full sun and the bells don't like it there. I am watering those twice a week.

I hope your peppers send side branches that produce on any the tops got nipped off.

 

[21hens-incharge]

I missed updating!

Whew it's been a busy summer so far.

We had a bad wind storm that broke about a foot off one of the bucket peppers. The rest are thriving. Even in our very high temps I have only had to refill the water in the buckets once a week.
The bucket peppers are outpacing the grow bag peppers dramatically. The grow bags require daily watering.

The bucket cucumber is twice as big as the in ground plant that was planted at the same time. I am impressed!
Both have small cucumbers set on and seem to be doing well.

The bucket cherry tomato is a bit disappointing. While it is producing it's not a favorite for flavor or number of tomatoes. It's likely the type of tomato. It's a new kind for me and won't be one I grow again.

With our 100+ degree highs most of the garden is looking a bit stressed and ragged.

The wheelbarrow zucchini is staying lush and looking good but most flowers have been male. The other wheelbarrow has lemon cucumbers that are setting fruit like crazy. I do have to water them both every morning.

Last year and the year before squash bugs decimated my attempts. So far no sign of them on anything.