I can't take credit for this idea, but I will give it a Two-Green-Thumbs-Up Award.
This self-watering container provides an easy way to grow herbs. It also makes a "fun" children's science experiment.
1. Take a 2 or 3 liter bottle.
2. Rinse it well with water/vinegar solution.
3. Cut the bottle in half.
4. Remove the cap and drill small holes around the cap in a circular pattern and one centered.
5. Cut a piece of cotton string to 12 inches. Tie a knot about 2-4" from the cut to make "Y"
6. Feed the string through the cap's hole to create a "wick" so that the water will flow up. Spread the strings' fibers around so that the wick will reach the entire planter.
id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498250055858681026" border="0" />7. Fill the bottom half of the liter bottle with water and liquid soil nutrients, if desired.
8. Attach the drilled lid to the top half (with the cotton string attached through the center)
9. Fill the top (capped) half with organic soil and plant your basil seeds)
10. Place the top piece (cap down) into the base of the liter bottle.
11. Place this self-watering planter in the sunlight, refilling the base with water as needed.
12. The wick (cotton string) acts to carry the water to the root structure providing optimum
water as needed.)
You can begin seedlings in this manner and transplant when desired into the garden or harvest directly from the container. With proper lighting conditions, plants can be grown indoors as well. Thank you's to our neighbors and their three young sons for experimenting and sharing the "wick-watering" growing method.
I'd like to try this out! Sounds really interesting, and my little one would love to help out with it! Do you know if there are any kitchen herbs that grow well indoors with only limited sunlight (2-3 hours of direct sunlight only)? I think basil is too "mediterranean" to grow well in limited sunlight. Maybe something from more northern climates?!?
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