Bat Guano & Cheaters

I got started planting today. 

Originally I was going to wait until the seedlings were ready for transplant, but my 6 packs of lettuces were starting to look sad and the whole reason for the Earthbox was not to have to worry about watering. And I was worrying. 

A little background about self-watering containers. The idea is that the one really difficult thing about growing healthy and tasty veggies is consistent water. If allowed to dry at all supposedly an irreversible bitterness is created. Daily watering is needed and in height of summer sometimes twice a day. 

I'm a succulent grower so even in summer I don't have to water every day. I like the idea that with the self-watering container I don't have to be standing over my veggies with a watering can at all times.

The Earthbox has a utilitarian faux terracotta look (they also make green). I added copper tape around the the bottom not in an attempt to make it look better, but in hopes of scaring away snails and slugs.

Here's the inside. Major lame move by company was to use a giant sticker on the perforated tray. Wasn't easy to remove, and as you can see, some still there. I made sure all holes were clear and proceeded with instructions.

Insert pipe into small hole, then stuff soil into openings in the perfed tray and fill bottom with water until it starts pouring out the drainage hole. Then add soil until halfway full, water and pat down. Add soil to top, water and pat down again.

Bat Guano! I almost forgot to mention! In addition to other exciting ingredients like sphagnum and chicken poop, my soil has bat guano! Thrilling to think that I'll be eating veggies that wouldn't exist without bats. Very cool.

The planting diagram for Earthbox wants two neat rows separated by this strip of fertilizer. So you build a mound down the center and then make a trough in the mound and fill with fertilizer. Here's where I wanted to deviate from instructions. I really want a 'cut and come again' style box, not decapitation, so I would have liked to mix in the fertilizer and filled the container all the way. 

There must be some reason for this. I do know that another one of the benefits of self-watering containers is that your fertilizer doesn't leave out the bottom, since water siphons up, the fertilizer stays put. So this might be why the strip is needed. 

At my parents house we just turn manure into the raised beds and don't use any 'fertilizer' at all. But I don't really have any experience to speak of so I just followed directions.

I pretty much consider this cheating. But look! Lettuce! On the left is 'Molto Mesclun'. Definitely an eye opener for me, I though Mesclun was a type of lettuce, but it really means mixture. This one has 14 heirloom lettuces. Then on the right, 'Bolinas' another mix including Mizuna and Tatsoi.

My plan is to plant the Arugulas, Oakleafs and peas in the back in a staggered way still avoiding the fertilizer strip.