Watering pots while on holiday with upturned plastic bottles

[pud1]

I am going away for two weeks next week and the forecast is sunny and little rain. It was the same last year and I asked my bil to water my pots but he didn’t do it so I came back to loads of wilted strawberries and some sorry looking hydrangeas. This year I need a back up plan. I have seen you tube vids of plastic bottles with holes poked in the lids upturned into the pots. Apparently this provides slow release water as the sun heats the air in the bottle. Is this effective. Has anyone done this with any success.

I got some pottery spikes to put into pots from amazon. You put wine bottles filled with water in - allegedly. I don't recommend at all. Super fragile, doesn't fit on wine bottle. Rubbish.

Are your pots terracotta? If so standing them in tray of water before you go - giving through soaking so pot absorbs water - can help.

I have filled up 2 litre plastic bottles with water, tipped them upside down in the soil, no cap and left them. I have found this to work quite well.

If you're worried about plants in pots, just move them all into the shade and water well before you go. I've covered plants in the ground with a rigged up shade cover (bamboo sticks and shade cloth). I've tried various versions of the upended bottle approach and have found that all the water drained out quite fast, and then came out the drainage holes at the bottom of the pot. You could try experimenting before you go and see if it works any better for you.

I got some plastic spikes that screw into plastic bottles which worked well except the one that got used as a water pistol by a child.

This kind of thing

www.amazon.co.uk/Neat-Ideas-Watering-Spike-Pack/dp/B002APLULG?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Also putting pebbles on top of the soil should slow evaporation.

Do you or any of your neighbours have a gardener? They may be willing to water for you for a bit of cash, if they are in the area. We have a gardener, and I ask her to come more often when we're on holiday. She passes our house on the school run so she is happy to, and I pay her extra. Worth asking?

I bought these watering spikes last year for my plants in work. www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B07D7WLHLS/ref=ppx_yo_mob_b_inactive_ship_o0_img?psc=1&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&ie=UTF8

They are no longer in stock but I'm sure similar are available. They have proven to be very effective at watering for longer periods while I've not been in the office (2 weeks at Christmas & easter, for example) . I have 2 spikes with the tubes dropped in a 2l container with water & baby bio which I top up weekly. It keeps the soil moist on my tropical pot plant (needs a lot of water, a normal pot plant would manage with 1). The bigger the container the longer it will water for.

I second giving then a good water then putting them in the shade, garage or similar.

I rigged up an amazing system one year when we were growing tomatoes... I went a bit OTT & made holes in milk bottles, quite low down, & threaded some lengths of string though. One end of the string reached the bottom of the milk bottle & the other I buried amongst the roots. I think I knotted the string so the knot sat against the hole on the inside to hold it in place. I filled the milk bottle & put the cap back on quickly to stop the water flowing out too quickly. The idea being that the string would absorb the water & the roots would suck it out of the string. I was so chuffed when we got back & found the milk bottles crushed & empty & the plants looking healthy!

Am liking the sound of this device @AGnu but can't quite get a picture in my head .I'm keen to have a go with my far too many containers ( honestly I try to reduce them every year but somehow end up with more ,I feel I need a support group ! )

So.......

if the holes were quite low down how does one end of the string reach the bottom of the bottle ? Surely it's there alreadY ?

Where did the bottles sit/stand ?

I can't picture it either! Any chance of a diagram or something? Keeping plants alive whilst on holidays has never been my strong point, this could be my saviour

Can I third the request for a sketch for that device? I've been trying to figure out how I'm going to manage watering on holiday but really shouldn't spend any more ££ on my allotment than I have already. Milk bottles and string sounds perfect. Did you knot the string each side to keep it tight against the bottle wall?

Poundland have water retaining crystals that you mix in with the soil in the pot and they work really well in keeping the soil moist.

I used to have this problem. I bought a seep hose and a timer for the tap. I rigged the seep hose over/around the pots (which I had also put in the shade), set the timer and it worked perfectly. (Apart from the slugs, which had a field day).
I now refuse to go away for more than 2 nights between the end of may and early september. My garden is more important. However, before I got the seep hose, I used to pay a neighbours responsible teenager to come and water, so could this be a possibility?

there are an awful lot of youtube suggestions all described v e r y slowly .

We do this with 2 litre bottles, wedged well in to the soil. Don’t take the lid off, the water runs out too fast, just poke a couple of holes through the lid. I also tied them to a wedged bamboo (or trunk/strong branch on big enough plants) to make sure they didn’t fall over if it got windy. Plants were all happy.

Langrish that sounds like the more charming of the links above ( last one ) .
He says poke 2 or 3 pinpricks with heated needle in the lid .Dont fill bottle completely ,leaving an inch or two at top ( when inverted ) creates a vacuum that stops water flooding out .During day sun/heat expands the vacuum and makes it push water out via pin pricked lid into soil .