Plant lovers often face the question: how to preserve potted flowers while on vacation for a month? After all, there are plants that can withstand the absence of watering for 2 weeks, but there are also species that need daily irrigation. In order not to have to persuade relatives or friends to pay a visit, it is necessary to organize automatic watering. Such designs can be purchased at the store or in order to save money, make them yourself.
Auto watering indoor plants on vacation
You need to use drip irrigation, a funnel, a wick, the "smart pot" system, or other methods. Any of these structures will protect the soil from drying out and excessive moisture, so that the plants will continue their full growth even in the absence of the owner.
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Homemade Auto Watering Systems
The easiest method is to water from a bottle. It is not difficult to make such a construction:
- You need to take a plastic bottle with a cap.
- Fill the container with water.
- Make a hole in the cover.
- In the bottom, make several holes to improve patency.
- Insert the bottle with the bottleneck down and the device is ready to work.
Important! The disadvantage of this method is that you have to spend a lot of time and covers, choosing the rate of flow of water.
Systems for automatic watering from the store
If there is no way to independently build a cunning design, then you need to purchase it in a store.
You can buy a plastic dropper or the Blumat sensor system.
A dropper for indoor plants works on the same principle as for a person, so you need to try it before you go on vacation. It is necessary to adjust the flow of moisture and make sure that everything is in order with the flowers.
The Blumat system was developed by an Austrian scientist. It is a plastic cone, the tip of which is made of special clay. It is through it that moisture enters the soil. Thanks to the unique design, indoor flowers absorb the required amount of water.
Blumat system
Drip irrigation systems for indoor plants
Today, there are many drip irrigation systems from different manufacturers.
Basically, this kit includes:
- container;
- cone;
- droppers;
- holders;
- stubs;
- a filter;
- hoses;
- hose clamp.
For the irrigation system to work, you need to install the tank above the level of the pots. This is an important rule for all systems. The cones are inserted into the pots and droppers are connected with a hose. The number of droppers depends on the size of the pot. All flowerpots form a common network.
For reference: Italian drip irrigation system G.F. Acqua Genius can provide irrigation for 18 days to 16 plants.
There are also large structures with which you can save the lives of five hundred indoor flowers.
Smart pots for automatic watering
Watering indoor plants in the absence of hosts can be done using special pots. They are a double construction. A flower grows in one tank and another is filled with water. Moisture supply can be from below or from the side. Many of these pots are equipped with an indicator, which is a float with marks of the minimum and maximum water levels.
From such pots, moisture gets into the soil gradually, as the soil dries. The only disadvantage of using "smart pots" is that some models are suitable only for those plants that have a well-developed root system. If the root does not reach the drainage layer, then the flower cannot be saturated with moisture. However, there are pots that are suitable for young plants. This information must be clarified upon purchase.
Attention! Such designs are used in everyday life, and not just on vacation, because drip irrigation is preferred for many plants.
Their use has many advantages:
- water in them at room temperature;
- there is no risk of waterlogging of the soil;
- with them it will be possible to avoid diseases that are associated with improper watering;
- there is no need to drain water from pallets;
- no need to worry that water does not fall on the plant;
- there is no need to ensure that the soil does not dry out;
- flowers can be left without custody for a long time.
Smart pot
Wick watering
Using a wick will help to answer the question: how to keep indoor flowers without watering for 2 weeks? This is just the case when a flower lover goes on vacation.
This method involves creating a simple design:
- A container of water is placed next to the flowerpot, for example on a stool. It must be located above the flower pot.
- One end of the bottle is dipped in gauze tubes (woolen threads / stripes of bandages). The other end of the tubes is lowered into the soil.
- Water will be absorbed into the threads and gradually fall into the ground.
Important! Synthetic fabrics are an ideal material for a wick, since they do not rot and have a long service life.
Using a wick, like other methods of autowatering, has its advantages and disadvantages.
The main advantages of such autowatering include:
- abundant flowering of plants, if we are talking, for example, about violets that love wick watering;
- such a method delivers moisture depending on the needs of the plant, therefore it is impossible to fill;
- young flowers are characterized by rapid development;
- no need to monitor the soil, the moisture in the containers can hold for several weeks.
Also, when using wick watering, the disadvantages of this method should also be considered:
- if you make the wick very thick or wide, then the plant may suffer from an excess of moisture;
- in winter, you need to monitor the temperature of the water, if it is cold, then the plant will die;
- the soil with such irrigation should be loose and airy, otherwise the moisture will stagnate and the roots will begin to rot.
Funnel Watering
On the market you can buy plastic and clay funnels. In plastic products, holes are made in the walls, and clay funnels do not have holes. They simply don’t burn the bottom, and water easily penetrates the soil. In addition, clay products are also an excellent decorative decoration. They can be in the form of a frog or a tortoise with an open mouth where water is poured.
Use of hydrogel
If you are interested in information on how to ensure watering of indoor plants with a long absence of hosts without the use of any structures, then a hydrogel will help. 1 g of such a polymer material is able to absorb about 250 ml of water, and then gradually give it to the soil.
Hydrogel Flower
Hydrogel can be placed in a pot when planting instead of a drainage layer, or bury at a depth of 2 cm from the surface. It can also be soaked for 8 hours - it absorbs water and swells. After that, it is laid out in pots, and covered with moist moss on top. This is necessary so that the hydrogel does not turn into dust, because there is an opinion that in this form it is toxic to the body.
There are several ways to provide indoor plants with moisture, so you should not burden your friends with your problems, or refuse to leave or leave the flowers to die. You just need to choose a convenient system of watering home flowers during the holidays and with a pure heart go on a long-awaited trip.