DIY Sub Irrigated Planters (SIP)

I'm going totally off topic today to bring you a quick DIY for any container gardeners out there. Amazingly, my most popular post of all time is another off topic DIY about my pipe clothing racks!

I'd like to give you a very brief introduction into the world of sub irrigated planters. I don't have a green thumb but I decided to grow some fresh herbs & peppers this year so I started looking for watering methods for container gardens. I quickly became intrigued with the idea of sub irrigation, which waters your plants from the bottom up through the root system. I found a great DIY that also explains the benefits of Sub Irrigated Planters (SIPs) as quoted below. Thanks so much to Running With Guts for getting me started!

• They have the capacity to hold large volumes of water without over-watering plants.
• You don’t need to water as frequently. Just fill it up until the planter starts draining from the overflow tube, and you’re good to go for a week or two (depending on capacity and your regional climate). Going away for a week or two, but can’t find someone to come water your garden? No problemo!
• They’re portable; I can start plants that are vulnerable to hard frosts sooner, because I can move the planters inside at night/on colder days.
• The built-in reservoir system gives your plants’ roots access to much needed oxygen, in addition to the water.

I went with the second method described in this post with a few modifications. Instead of seltzer bottles I used this corrugated perforated pipe and this bulb guard tube from Lowe's.

Materials List

• Corrugated perforated pipe
• Bulb guard tube
• Heavy duty scissors
• Drill
• Landscape fabric
• Plastic bags
• Rubber bands
• Plastic totes or old recycling bins

Cut lengths of corrugated perforated pipe as pictured below and secure a bit of plastic bag over each end with rubber bands. The plastic bags help keep dirt out of the pipes. Place in your plastic tote.
Next cut a hole in one of your corrugated tubes that is just big enough for the bulb guard tube, which will be used to water your plants. You'll want to cut the bulb guard tube about a foot taller than your tote for ease of use in the future. You should now have something similar to the picture below.

Next you'll need to drill a few drainage holes in your tote. I used 1/8" holes about 1" below the top of your corrugated pipe to allow for 3" of water and 1" of air in the finished planter.

Last step is landscape fabric to cover the corrugated pipe. You don't have to be too perfect or fussy here, just cut a section large enough to tuck in a bit around the edges. Don't forget to cut an x in the fabric for your fill tube.

Now you're ready to add whatever soil & plants you'd like! I went with a combination of basil & peppers in each of my totes & everything went great. Below is a picture of the very moist soil after I pulled up a basil plant that had gone to seed. Very cool to see such wet soil when I haven't watered from above at all!

This version isn't very nice looking but I plan to make either wooden or welded steel plate containers  on stands for each tote in the future.

Thanks for reading & let me know if you have any questions about the process of putting one of these together.
April