Ever wanted to grow plants but you didn't have enough room for them? Have you ever wanted to grow plants in a more water-friendly way? Are you tired of raking and your garden and pulling out those stubborn leaves or using harmful chemicals that are not healthy for you and damage the fruit's flavor and texture?
The simple answer is a vertical planter: The vertical planter allows you to grow plants in a very small area limited only by height, and that too can be amended. It uses a water-friendly watering system where the water is not wasted but moves on to other plants. It needs no chemicals for those pesty weeds! Did I mention it is easy to make?
Materials:
- Any length 4-6 inch wide PVC or any other kind of pipe
- Planting soil and compost
- Any plants you want (I don't recommend large plants or bushes)
- Large pebbles of about the same size to put under
- A drip irrigation pipeline (you can also water from above and it will trickle down)
Tools:
- Circular drill bit (Or a jigsaw if you don't happen to have one)
- Drill
The simple answer is a vertical planter: The vertical planter allows you to grow plants in a very small area limited only by height, and that too can be amended. It uses a water-friendly watering system where the water is not wasted but moves on to other plants. It needs no chemicals for those pesty weeds! Did I mention it is easy to make?
Materials:
- Any length 4-6 inch wide PVC or any other kind of pipe
- Planting soil and compost
- Any plants you want (I don't recommend large plants or bushes)
- Large pebbles of about the same size to put under
- A drip irrigation pipeline (you can also water from above and it will trickle down)
Tools:
- Circular drill bit (Or a jigsaw if you don't happen to have one)
- Drill
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Signing UpStep 1: Choosing your pipe
The first step is deciding the height and width of the pipe. The difference between the width of the pipes depend on how much space you have and and the space you want between the plants- for a 4 inch pipe I recommend only one hole so the plants have enough room for their roots and to expand hole only on one side of the pipe on each row (or if you are planting flowers you can make 2 holes on each side). For 6 inch pipes you can have up to 3 holes in each row depending on which plants you choose (I recommend three holes for flowers only, the rest either one hole or two). The size of the hole directly depends on the plants type and size. I made a 2.35 inch wide by 2.8 inch high hole ( 6cm wide by 7cm height hole)
You can cut the pipe to any length you want, depending on your restrictions. The pipe must be put at least a fourth of its height above ground, in the ground.
I mean by this that if you want the height of your pipe to be 4 foot above ground, you will need to have a foot below ground, which means that the total height of the pipe is 5 feet.
Another example for this is, if you want the height above ground to be 2 meters tall then you will need 50cm underground, thus having a two and a half meter pipe.
You can cut the pipe to any length you want, depending on your restrictions. The pipe must be put at least a fourth of its height above ground, in the ground.
I mean by this that if you want the height of your pipe to be 4 foot above ground, you will need to have a foot below ground, which means that the total height of the pipe is 5 feet.
Another example for this is, if you want the height above ground to be 2 meters tall then you will need 50cm underground, thus having a two and a half meter pipe.
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what i did is just take stuff i like think for a few sec if it will work or, talked with my local gardening store.
As for plumbing, PVC is used for water/waste leaving the house, not coming into it.
The reason PVC is not food safe is because petro chemicals leech out of it over time. This means that over time, what ever is stored inside absorbs those chemicals. If it is food, and the food is ingested, then those chemicals gets inside whoever eats that food.
This is a great idea, but we need a different material to build it from.
Further, food manufacturers (and I do work for one) will not use PVC for their packaging because of the leeching concern. This leeching is what makes PVC not food grade.
Now, I'm not saying that your project is bad. But I am concerned about the material used. Especially since I assume this is something that will be out in the full sun, where it will get heated up.
The vertical watering system is a great idea and I hope to use it myself.
But I couldn't just let everyone thing that is was perfectly okay to us PVC in food manufacturing, even when it's growing it yourself.
If this use of PVC worries you than you have a great deal to worry about. If your house or apartment is plumbed with PVC than you are putting PVC water on your food, your house plants, drinking it, and cooking with it. If your garden hose is made of PVC, than you are watering your garden with PVC water. Hell, your gutters could be made of PVC, than all the rain washing off your roof onto your yard is PVC water.
Two reasons.
1) It avoids the possibility of the toxicity issues that some have raised.
2) It's easier to fill with compost at the beginning of the season, and clear out at the end of the season. One simply unscrews one plank to have easy access to the inside of the container, as a U-shaped channel.
and i added a picture of the first harvest of the season
Why isn't this more common!?
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A more 'biodegradeable' version might be to use the cardboard tubes that carpets come on (or bolts of fabric, or how about postal tubes).
Though, obviously, they WILL ROT, and you may want to use a wood preservative to colour them until your plants disguise them.
And you might want to be careful (particularly with foodcrops) about any chemicals they might contain.
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If you want to make more of a display, then binding several together (rather like a 'desk tidy') would probably allow you to sink them less deeply.
"The worst plastic, from both an environmental and health standpoint, is polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, commonly known as vinyl."
http://healthychild.org/blog/comments/pvc_the_most_toxic_plastic/
"While on its surface PVC may appear to be the ideal building material, it has high environmental and human health costs that its manufacturers fail to tell consumers." - Greenpeace
http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/en/news-and-blogs/news/how-to-find-and-avoid-toxic-vi/
Ahh, the nutjobs.
My mention of chemicals was only in connection with the cardboard tubes alternative - and, then, simply because I don't know what is in the glue that holds the layers together, or in what waterproofs the exteriors of postal tubes.
As for cardboard tubes, I doubt there is anything toxic in their make-up, but carpet tubes and (to a lesser extent?) the centres of fabric bolts might be able to absorb 'asties' from some poorly-manufactured, foam-backed carpets...
But as I don't know, I thought I should flag-up the possibility.
i just wanted to make sure there are no miss understand
They seem to be used quite a bit at 'pick your own' strawberry farms. My advice from personal experience is to make sure to sand down any openings you cut into the PVC just to be safe.
Also, in light of the comments about the toxicity of PVC, what about using a clay pipe like those of old for construction? I think one may still be able to get them. Not sure how they would hold up to being cut, but they would be of the same type of material that is used for regular clay planting pots.
Thanks again!
http://makeprojects.com/Project/Stain-PVC-Any-Color-You-Like/296/1
i did not paint the PVC it came at that color.
i think clay pipe will make a good job because they are astatic,and there biodegradability, i dont know how will you can cut them if you can. but if so it will make a very cool Vertical Planter
The idea is excellent, but the PVC is not green, not matter how much the manufacturer claims it to be.
Instead of buying more plastic it would be better if we reuse what others throw away
See http://www.petenpam.com/?p=94
And http://youtu.be/-uDbjZ9roEQ
We dont need PVC and we can still stack as a tower.
I know that the grey exists at my homeimprovement store... I believe it is for electrical conduit -but it would work as well.
Thanks for the reply and great instrucable.
Jim
http://www.highcountryconservation.org/pdf/Microsoft%20Word%20-%20PVC.pdf
Love your idea. Going to be living in camper and now I can have fresh herbs :)
There are differences in food grade and non-toxic plastics, learned that when looking for extra water storage for camper.
Nice article. Very simple but elegant. Congrats on your first article.
A couple of thoughts.
1. You do not mention the size of the openings.
2. You do not mention what to do if the soil falls out of the openings.
I do intend on making one.
1. I think having the openings in a spiral might be more pleasing.
2. To make the openings, a hole saw drill bit, say about 3 inches would
make a more pleasing opening.
Using the hole saw would eliminate the jig saw.
3. Placing empty water bottles in the tube will help take up space and
reduce the amount of dirt needed.
If placed near the top it would increase the stability, by reducing top weight.
4. If soil does come out the opening, possibly the hole could be made with
the top of the cutout still attached,
like a flap just push it in. Sort of the way a bird feeder works.
One more thing. All drill bits are circular that I know of. No need to say it.
Again, nice idea and article.
Steve
I made a "lettuce tree" using this technique, with the base of the pipe inserted through the lid of a 5-gal bucket. I ran tubing from an pump in the bucket to the top of the pvc pipe, filled the pipe with perlite and vermiculite, and filled the bucket with the appropriate hydroponic foodstuffs. with those "hole saw offcut" covers over the planting holes, there was very little water loss through the planting holes. It worked like a charm and I always told myself I'd do an Instructable...glad somebody beat me to it!