ways to sabotage a self-watering container?

I've been reading up on all the ways to make your own ebucket or earthbox, but sometimes I learn just as much by learning what didn't work. So far I have -
>used wrong soil - didn't wick enough such as mushroom compost
>wrong hole placement - too low so not enough water was stored
>wrong fertilizer - needs to be on top instead of hydroponic stuff in the water? not clear on this one
>not top-watering at first, or using dry soil at first
>not enough soil contact for good wicking
>too high of a container for effective wicking?
>wrong choice of plant material - not clear on this one, either
>putting holes in the wrong spots
>not using a wide enough watering tube?

I'm also still unclear on whether worms in the pot are very important, if mulch can be used instead of a plastic top, the ratio of resevoir to growing dirt, reusing the soil, keeping critters from tearing them up, and the worst use for these. Everyone seems to agree they are great for tomato's, but I don't grow those.

Did I sum this up correctly? What did I miss? What would you do differently if you were making some now?

My only previous experience with this sort of thing was making a vacation wicking watering system, which worked so well there were puddles on the floor instead of dry plants. A great plan may not work in the real world, or need serious modification, so I want to pick your brains.

Generally when people ask me about SWC and are considering making their own I give them all the same advice: Buy a commercial earthbox and use it for a season to see how it works. Then make one's own. Starting off making one's own is problematic because to work well requires understanding how they work so the mix isn't soaked or too dry.

There are some good DIY instructions on the web and various forums, but there are some bad one's as well. The best are the result of making, testing, modifying, testing etc.

The commercial earthbox is near perfect in design, and it is exceptionally well tested. I have used some other designs on the market and the more I do, the more I appreciate the testing that went into the EB. It's brilliant.

Moving on:

Most who use SWC either use EB methodology for fertilization which is to place a fertilizer strip on the surface (actually very slightly buried). Some instead choose to incorporate the fertilizer into the planting mix. You most certainly can add water soluble fertilizers to the reservoir instead, but it requires a little more knowledge to do correctly. First, your fertilizer needs to really be water soluble. Many liquid ferts mixed with water are not water soluble, they simply suspend in the water and left unagitated for a few hours separate from the water.

Next, the amount to use has to be determined. This is an area many will get wrong at first. Generally adding a water soluble fert in a decent ratio 3:1:2 for leafy plants, 3:1:3 for most others and a 1:1:1 ratio for those who don't care to be more precise works well. Strength of the dilution is dependent on the plant grown (how heavy a feeder is it) and the stage of growth (large plants need more than small plants). I could go into more detail, but won't unless someone really cares ;)

Most will go with the granular fert in or on the mix because it's easier and works well.

Worms in the pot are supremely unimportant. No need whatsoever. Worms in the garden are great, in containers they usually suffer and die and while they live they just eat potting mix.

The plastic top is used to prevent rain from getting into the container. With a heavy rain the granular fertilizer can release nutrients too quickly and 'burn' the plants. If you are using water soluble ferts in the reservoir you don't need the cover.

Hope this helps some

Great info - much appreciated. For the moment, I may just mix in compost, and leave the fertilizer alone. If needed, maybe a follicle.

Would love to buy an EB first, but no budget for it. I do have access to some 55 gallon drums, so rather than drilling holes in the bottom of the halves, I'm thinking of having a bit of a water reservoir at the bottom instead.

These will be for growing out some rooted bush cuttings, possibly some small tree seedlings, as opposed to planting them in a bed for 1/2 a year before they get sold. Kind of a different use than most of them, but it sounds like it would be better than putting them in a bed, considering I don't have a bed for them yet. I'm guessing I should only have about 10 inches of media above the drainage line for these.

Since the cuttings won't be ready until late July, can anyone recommend an early crop that my be done by that time, so I can try them out, make adjustments, etc.?

There are some great post on the container forum by Justaguy and Tapla and others about why mixing organic cow poo type gardening and container gardening can lead to problems. After years and years of reading Mother Earth news and Organic Gardening magazines, I had a hard time wiping the cow poo and worm juice stuff out of my mind too. But my container gardening has gone a lot better since I did. I have flower beds out front where I can play organic. But containers are another matter and handled differently as some of those post on the Container forum will inform you. As far as the so-called "Self-watering" stuff is concerned, for the price of one store bought self watering container, you can easily set set up a system from a faucet, some half inch and some quarter inch tubing and some drippers and probably have money left over for a beer. Or herb tea, whatever your choice is. :-)

Huh, and here I was planning on just doing coir and cow manure! I'll definitely give those a look. Any specific threads I should look for?

The sticky's at the top of this forum by Tapla plus those at the top of the Container forum will provide you with enough reading from now to midnight. :-) His posts draw many other very knowledgeable container gardeners and those post's provide a liberal education in container gardening.

Im glad you are interested in using Coir. Lots of us "coca-nuts" on this forum. The website, www.instagarden.com is a good source for coir related products and their $79 "starter" garden is a good way to get started with it.