Holiday houseplant watering system?

[FizzingAda]

Can anyone recommend a watering system for houseplants whilst away on holiday for three weeks? I have about six plants, and there is no-one around to water them (we are in an isolated country cottage). They are all very mature plants in fairly large pots, would hate to lose them. TIA.

Could you put them in the bath on some of that capillary matting? Or even better, sink full of water with capillary matting dipped in it and plants on a draining board?

The bath/sink and capillary matting is a good tip, and if you don't have any capillary matting, an old bath towel does the job. Another idea is to move them all as close together as you can into the coolest part of the house, and away from any sunny windows. That way they dry out far more slowly and they all help each other keep the air humid around themselves. Water them after you've moved them so they aren't so heavy!

Depends which plants ...

Plastic bottles with hole in lid and a few around the neck - fill them up, then shove them in to the earth upside down to drip feed.

It is recommended that clustering plants together helps too. Group them round a bucket of water, away from strong sun, then put a cotton 'wick' of some sort (strips of towel) from bucket to pot.

I tried the capillary matting once, and came home to it being dry as a bone.
I had three large maidenhair ferns, a palm, and a cyclamen, all about 25 years old. The bathroom is the coolest place, I thought I would put them in there, but wasn't sure what system to use so they don't dry out, especially the ferns.

It really does depend on the type of house plant.

I have a very established variegated monstera, about 6ft tall. I would happily leave it for 3 weeks but the day before I went I would soak it for an hour in a deep bath and then leave it to drain in a more shaded/cooler spot. Then just do the same when I return and return it to its normal spot. If you really need to keep it watered then place a jug of water slightly above the soil level with a cotton cured in the water trailing out onto the edge of the soil.

If it's something more delicate like an alocasia then I'd reconsider as i can't seem to key them alive , they like to die the second my attention is not on them.

Sorry just saw the last post, look at a reptile bug dripper? It's basically a small tank with a tiny tap , you can connect fish tank hose to it and split it with connectors so you can control the drops per minute etc.

I managed to keep about 20 plants alive over a 3 week absence in the middle of a very hot summer. Used a method mentioned above, on a much bigger scale. Plants on the floor in the bathroom (only room with light), large covered bucket on the toilet (so higher up) and a length of wet cotton wicking cord dangling in the water (tied a bolt on the end to make it sink), and then buried in the soil of the flower pot. For big pots I used 3-4 cords buried around the edge. It worked really well!

Aaah, maidenhair ferns. Yikes LOL.

If I had ever managed to keep any of them alive long enough to get them large, and was going away for three weeks, I would put those in the bath in a few inches of water.

https://images.app.goo.gl/LTSMM3Da2ts92ajs7

like this

Thanks everyone, I've just ordered some wicking cord from Amazon. I hadn't heard of this, I'd tried ordinary cord before, which didn't work, but the reviews are all positive, so fingers crossed. I'll try it before we go and report back!

I use these:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/BLUMAT-10520-Automatic-Watering-X-Large/dp/B008SR2VTK/ref=sr_1_5?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.5_yPhO-R3in0uszbifLJ-6-a1fNvXFTpTHCpr8cwimU1Wz2sapdv8bbmqvnJC7Ek-8hxGv3XQQ-jYuFJg7jkLWB6pnqSD1w1DeUebEnsye02MOu3GoiI71b_1nENQr0YihFQZxzc8ZTADAp7nWsbUzN08Af597U90xVkWC9CcF08DiZg_00z9wvNx-bpo0xl6zasV5sUX4HRp_PSSF_g04OC_XJHl_p0zrU6seAlW9uW7gL14tZz3WrtYDRNknMHH5tnhyFefsHrPH4HjWeqDqOIUpl2pK_1angTtOGtd-0.49SOLb_9iBa-VU8D-Cq7NCHfv4I1I0dNPEfAbsfISCg&dib_tag=se&keywords=blumat&qid=1715192446&sr=8-5

They have kept my inordinate number of large and small houseplants alive for reasonably extended periods while I was away. It does take a fairly large reservoir to keep them going for a long time though, maybe the bath?

@rickyrickygrimes that’s amazing!

Thanks CatherinedeBourgh, will make a note. Quite expensive for a few plants, though. Will see how the wick8ng cord goes first, got some time before my holiday.🙂

Did you have a big water reservoir?

Yes, I did, used a huge bucket. It just wasn't enough. Hope the wicking works! It's arriving today, so will try it out and see what happens.