In addition to care and attention, plants need plenty of water. There is a simple trick for forgetful and busy hobby gardeners: watering plants with a plastic bottle. It’s child’s play and the perfect solution when you’re on vacation and don’t have time to water your plants.
Water dispenser for plants made from a PET bottle
Immediately after planting, flowers, vegetable plants and kitchen herbs are particularly thirsty. To water the plants evenly without drowning them, the following trick with a plastic bottle has proven to be effective.
Material list for the water dispenser
- Plastic bottle (1 or 1.5 liters)
- Cutter knife
- Screwdriver or ice pick
- Lighter
How to build the water dispenser
- The choice of plastic bottle is not entirely unimportant: it’s best to use a PET bottle made of soft plastic – that way you can cut it to size more easily.
- Cut off the bottom of the plastic bottle with the cutter knife. To avoid cutting yourself, you should warm the cut edge with a lighter afterwards.
- Heat the tip of the screwdriver with a lighter and poke a few holes in the plastic lid. Alternatively, you can use an ice pick.
- Screw the lid onto the bottle and place it upside down in the potting soil. Fill it with water – and you’re done!
The advantage of this trick is that the plant only draws as much water as it needs. This prevents drying out and overwatering. This trick is ideal for plants with a high water requirement such as tomatoes or zucchinis.
Hot tipEven if you want to water your lawn, a plastic bottle is a cheap alternative to expensive sprinklers. All you need is a PET bottle, some insulating tape and a garden hose.
