Hello steemit, with a little clever ingenuity you can now recycle and turn those left over soda bottles into a beautiful vertical garden. All we need are a few simple supplies and a bit of crafting skills.
This is Do-It-Yourself DIY vertical gardening!
You will need:
- 2 - liter plastic bottle, empty and clean
- Pair of Scissors
- Rope, string, twine, or wire
- Washers (two per bottle if thin rope or wire is chosen)
- Dirt (general potting soil will do
- Seedlings (herbs, vegetables, or other plants are all OK)
Instructions
To secure the bottles, you must first make two holes by punching through both sides of the bottom of the cylinder and at the top of the bottle. See the pictures for an example.
In addition to the holes made for your rope, you need a couple extra small holes in the bottom of the bottle. This is so that water used to irrigate the seedling can drain off.
After that, thread the string through a hole and pull out through the other side.
Note: Many people have asked how to make sure the bottles do not “slip down” on the rope (or string or cordage). Either tie a large knot in the rope or tie the knot around a washer at the desired level.
To cut out the center piece simply make a small hole and use a pair of scissors to make the cutout.
Then simply stretch and attach the rope to the wall. This can be achieved by using washers tied to the top anchor point and fastened into place by inserting a anchor bolt into the wall.
Once your wall garden is up and hanging fill with potting soil, plant your seeds and water!
Thanks for stopping by I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and happy recycling :-)
Cheerz
Very cool!
More from the Vertical recycling department:
Here is a photo of a recycled delivery pallet from Wave Hill in the Bronx. I lOVE this and want to make one.
Also a great idea! I looked into it and will possibly make it my next project thanks!
Also a very good idea! Thanks :-)
Great idea. Will have to start collect bottles now too. Will post pictures when I'm done.
Thanks!
Creative, yet, impractical. Fuck it, have an upvote.
Hahahah you made me laugh returned the favor!
interesting and so creative. i really like this. Will do it for my balcony :)
Ever think about a simple hydroponic dripper style setup? Get a small reservoir with a pump and run some drip tubes into those bottles, makes watering much easier.
I have considered using tubing with a pin hole located within the soil of each bottle. You could then just use a gravity feed water supply at the top. It will then slowly soak into the soil. Just a theoretical idea I have.
Yea that would work to, just something to make it easier to water all those lol.
amazing idea!
Thanks appreciate it!
THis is very creative. Thanks for sharing @bitminer
Pleasure, It's a great way to grow herbs for the kitchen. I am over enthusiastically collecting bottles so I can expand my herb garden !
Awesome man. keep doing great work @bitminter
Thank you very much appreciate it!
whoa.. I just saw this kind of vertical wall garden when I was on a motorcycle days ago. I was wondering how do the people make them. Glad to find it here.
Glad I could help enjoy your future bike rides!
This is awesome! I would be worried a crack baby would come along and try to eat the harvest. Plus I would wonder if it can get enough light there. Upvoted
Hi, I am not ot sure out the crack baby's but as for light any good ambient light will work well for herbs or flowers. Direct sunlight is mostly required for vegetables and tree's.
The photo example showing the vertical gardening directly facing another wall a short distance away would not give the plants enough sunlight. Plus the plants will grow lopsided. Just saying.
@akana, I grow many herbs in full shade with fantastic results! As long as you have good ambient light your plants will thrive! Always remember light is 50% of a plants requirements, Soil, water and food are just as important.
Nice concept. Do you ever put holes in the bottom in case of over watering?
Also, I think the openings may be a bit too large and cause quicker drying of the soil. Has this been a problem for you?
@steemgenerator, Depending on your situation you are 100% correct! The size of the opening will determine the amount of evaporation to a degree, However when it is hot a plant will transpire far more water through it's leaves, than what could ever evaporate from the soil. I find one or two small holes for drainage will be adequate. Remember runoff will trickle down from one recycled bottle to the next one below.
Very cool! Have you found an easy way to keep them watered?
Hi @craigwilliamz, Thanks great question. I find that I only water once a week. If you are growing herbs I would highly recommend building your garden wall against a wall that has semi shade. When your garden wall has been build in a spot that get's all day sun your plants will bake and dry out very quickly.
very creative
Hello all, I have had a lot of questions about growing in the shade, I just wanted to share some info that shows growing in the shade is not a problem. Some herbs will only grow in a shady area for example.
Below I have included a link that covers a few herbs to give you an idea. Mint grows very well for example.
http://www.vegetablegardener.com/item/15154/15-herbs-that-grow-in-shade
That's pretty clever, great use of what would otherwise be unproductive space!
It works well when garden space is an issue, Thanks
Another fun idea
https://steemit.com/recycle/@bitminter/recycle-diy-glass-jar-plant-or-herb-terrerium
Very cool! Following you now. You intend to write more eco related content? FYI, I myself live in an ecovillage (http://www.dancingrabbit.org). I'm also a professional online marketer and I've built up an email list of 50k+ Berniecrats that I'm interested in getting on this platform. Do you have any interest in writing content that would appeal to my subscribers?
Hello, Thank you for the follow and reply. Currently I am mostly focusing on a career on steemit but possibly in the near future. Thank you so much for the feedback much appreciated!
My thinking is that getting your content in front of my Bernicrats would help you build a career here. At first I'm sure my Bernicrats would all be minnows if they join at all, but over time some would become dolphins at least. Emailing your Steemit content to my list when there are a handful of dolphins on my list could do wonders for your post payout. Make sense?
@nathanbrown Yes sure I am up for that! Let me know and we take it from there. Cheerz
Do you use Steemit.chat? We could PM on there about it. If not, do you use Skype or Facebook?
Very nicely implemented and decorated. But i think its not ideal for plants where required a lot of water. Or do you tried also with tomatos?
Hi @grunet, personally with the one I have made I only use it for herbs, I would imagine you are 100% correct in saying tomatoes would need more water. I would say it's possible to grow tomatoes they would just need more regular watering intervals. Thanks