How do I keep an indoor plant hydrated while I'm away?

Question

I'm trying to grow chili plants in my dorm room. So far I'm just starting, so I have just four small pots (until they grow larger and I have to give them a bigger home). I'm usually away for only a few days, but especially in summer my absence could be even a few weeks. The biggest problem so far is keeping the plants hydrated during the time that I'm absent from my university city.

One of the solutions that was suggested to me was Tropf Blumat system. Are there other ways of keeping them hydrated?

Answer 1

I have heard that an easy way to do an automatic watering system is to take a soda bottle and put a pin hole in the top. You can make the hole just small enough to have a drop of water come out at a time.

Place the bottle cap down into your pot. This will provide a constant drip of water into your plant. Try it with a small bottle and test the hole to make sure only a very small drip is coming out. This would suffice for short trip.

Answer 2

If you plant them in a small plant-pot, you could just take them with you when you move. It'd be a lot cheaper than an automated watering system and your chilli will appreciate the extra care.

Answer 3

I know a couple of people that have used AquaGlobes successfully. They are really just a commercial version of your soda bottle idea.

If you have a lot of plants, they also make sophisticated systems for watering them for a longer period of time like this one.

Answer 4

If they can handle some wet soil I put them in a pan of water that goes 1/2 way up the pot. This has worked for me for over a week. I don't think anything will work for a summer. I have also watered plants well and drained them. Then wrapped the pot in a plastic bag and sealed it to the bottom of the plant with a twist tie. The water gets used by the plant but doesn't evaporate from the soil surface. The plant is exposed to the air so it doesn't mold or rot.

Answer 5

In the end, I've bought Tropf Blumat system that works with ceramic cones.

Unfortunately, all my chilli plants died before that...

Anyway, thanks to everyone for your help! Hopefully this question+answers will help others too.

Answer 6

I have not tried this method but read this blog post a while ago. Looks like a potential solution for you.

Plant Hack: Watering plants while you’re away