Hi all,
Im looking for a present. A while ago I bought a herb grower with automatic lighting and watering for in the kitchen from kickstarter. Something similar like aerogarden. Unfortunately it died twice and is hard to repair.
It’s a bit of a nice market I think, foremost could find Chinese crap. It should be friendly to the eye so i’m not really aiming for PVC DiY solution. If possible no apps and no proprietary “holders” required.
Any suggestions for the EU are more than welcome!
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I know it doesn’t look it. It’s not “techy” enough, but terracotta pots provide automatic watering. They’re porous and wick water. Just get a plate or tray to sit them in and pour water into the plate or tray every now and then.
As for lighting, grow lights are
a dime10 cents a dozen. From upmarket looking things from garden centres, to good enough from Lidl, to slave labour trash from Temu.That’s all you need. Or sod the light and use a window.
But genuinely, it reads like I’m being an arse, but terracotta pots will be far more reliable and “automatic” than any techy kirkstarter electronics. And they look nice. And they don’t add to the already vastly overwhelming plastic pollution. And they’re definitely made in Europe.
That is a super cool idea! Thank you very much. I feel almost stupid i didn’t thought about that.
Ans i agree completely less shit is definitely better. And they certainly look good. Lets see what i can come up with!
do the pots need holes in them or anything?
Nah, not if you’re bottom watering using terracotta. The water wicks through the terracotta into the soil.
If you’re top watering (pouring water into the top of the soil) then yeah drainage holes would be needed. But most plants are much happier with bottom watering and it encourages a better root system.
would the opposite work. Like you know your watering to much if water starts showing on the plate underneath?
Not necessarily. If left to dry out too much soil can become hydrophobic, and won’t absorb water immediately. If you top watered in that situation then the water would run out, not because you’ve over watered but because you’ve underwatered and the soil isn’t absorbing anything.
Something like this, from Sweden? https://www.auk.com/?country=US
Thats very nice thank you!
You don’t need any gadgets to grow herbs.
Look up what a kratky bucket is. Herbs don’t need a lot of light either. Alternatively if you have access to a 3d printer there’s a lot of cool hydroponic things you can print.
A few of 100mm plant pots, watered weekly, on a windowsill with auxiliary lighting in winter or if it’s north or east facing will go a long way.