From now on, your balcony plants will no longer show that you are on a well-deserved vacation. Just a few simple steps are enough for plants in flower boxes and pots to be able to use their own water supply. This guide will inform you about the best methods for watering balcony plants while on vacation.
How do I water balcony plants on vacation?
To water balcony plants on vacation, you can place a roll of paper in a bucket filled with water and in the substrate or use a PET bottle with a clay cone that gradually releases the water to the plants.
Build your own holiday irrigation – how to do it right
The following irrigation method was put to the test by critical balcony gardeners and judged to be recommended. The material required for each plant container is limited to 1 bucket, 1 roll of kitchen paper, 1 pair of scissors and stale water. How to construct the automatic holiday watering:
- Make a roll out of the kitchen paper
- Measure the length of the paper roll so that the substrate is covered and a long end piece is created
- Place the bucket next to the balcony plant and fill it with water
Press the paper roll onto the substrate for firm ground contact. Place the long end of the roll in the bucket of water. While you relax on vacation, the balcony plant draws the water through the paper roll into the substrate and waters itself.
Plastic bottle method – this is how it works
The clever combination of a PET bottle and a clay cone with a screw thread acts as a magical plant sitter for the holiday season. The bottle is filled with fresh water after cleaning. You can replace the previous screw cap with a clay irrigation cone (€11.00 on Amazon). The material is sufficiently porous so that the capillary forces of the plant soil can gradually remove the water.
The water supply of a standard PET bottle is not sufficient for holiday watering of large balcony boxes and pots. In this case, specialist retailers offer clay cones that are connected to an external water container with a thin hose. This variant also works without electricity and supplies your balcony plants with water until you return.
Tip
If a perennial balcony plant has withered after the holiday - despite your best efforts - please do not throw the perennial away. Instead of disposing of the stressed plant, awaken the floral spirit with a vitalizing treatment. To do this, cut off anything that has withered, pot up the root ball and soak it in water until no more air bubbles appear. Repotted into fresh substrate, there is a good chance that the plant will recover.
