Make Your Own (DIY!!)
SELF WATERING POTS

By Rachel Gleeson for The Village Observer July 2021

Are you unsure of how often to water your houseplants? Finding it difficult to stick to a regular watering programme? These are common problems that often lead to our houseplants looking sad and unhealthy. When a pot plants soil dries out between watering, it shrinks a little and causes a gap to form between the potting mix and the side of the pot. when re-watering the water often runs down the side of the pot before it has had a chance to hydrate the soil and your plant remains thirsty!

The easiest way to overcome this problem is by giving your plant access to a permanent reservoir of water. You can do this by using a self-watering pot. You may have noticed that the range of self-watering pots available on the market is very limited and rather anaesthetically pleasing.! Solution… Make your own!

WHAT YOU NEED:

Hardware Store:

• Builders BOG (if your pot currently has a hole in base)

• Copper pipe offcut

• 2 masonry drill bits.. one small & one same width of the pipe

• Silicone sealant (clear ‘gutter and roof’)

• Pond sealer

Tools:

• Drill

• Hack saw (for cutting pipe)

• Paint brush

• Hammer

Method

– Choose a concrete, terracotta or ceramic pot. If it has a hole in the bottom mix builders bog and apply generously to plug it up.

– Drill a hole through side of pot approximately 1/5 of the way up (first drill hole with the smaller drill bit and once done use the larger to make it wider).

– Cut a piece of copper (about 5 or 6 times the thickness of the pot) and gently tap it through the hole with the hammer so it protrudes out both sides.

– Apply silicone sealant around pipe. Let dry.

– Paint the inside of the pot with pond sealer to just above pipe. Flip and also paint base (that sits on the ground normally). Repeat when dry.

– Fill the pot to painted level with polystyrene pieces or gravel.