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Here is a way to maximize your limited porch or garden space by growing vertically. You'll learn to make drip-irrigating garden towers out of recycled 2-liter soda bottles. This method works well for growing flowers, herbs, and small veggies.
Steps
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Cut around the base of one soda bottle. Make the cut a bit below where the label ends, ideally so that a tiny bit of the bottom curve inward is preserved. This will help the bottles nest tightly together when you stack them. Discard base of bottle -
Poke two drainage holes with scissors, on opposite sides, about three inches above the cap. How big? No bigger than the diameter of a Bic pen. [1] X Research sourceAdvertisement -
Fill the bottle with potting mix, compost or garden soil, pressing the soil in lightly. Leave an inch of space at the top of the bottle. -
Tie the base for your tower onto a supporting structure, such as chain-link fencing or wire, with twine. [2] X Research source
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Cut the bottom off a bottle, just as you did to create the base. Remove the cap and discard. -
Fill the bottle gently with soil, as for the base, reserving one inch of space at the top. -
Nest the bottle firmly atop the base, and tie it on. -
Repeat this part 1-3 times, depending on how tall you want your tower to be.
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Cut a bottle in half about midway toward the top. This bottle will be shorter than the others, and will serve as a funnel for watering. -
Cut the bottom off a final bottle, just as you did for the base and tower levels. This will be the watering bottle. -
Drill a one mm hole in the cap, or pierce with a nail, and replace cap. -
Place the funnel atop the tower, nesting it firmly in the soil of the level below. -
Place the watering bottle atop the funnel, and (optionally) tie down.
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Cut three lines in each soil bottle with a box cutter, as if you were drawing the top and sides of a square. (Each side of the square should be about 1.5-2 inches.) Leave the bottom of the square uncut, and instead fold down the flap. This creates a valve to hold the soil and seedling in. [3] X Research source -
Poke a hole, and insert a small seedling or seeds. -
Fill the watering bottle every few days, as needed. -
Finished.
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Community Q&A
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QuestionOn the funnel bottle do you also put a hole in the cap, or is it removed?Community AnswerYes, the funnel bottle has a cap with a hole in it. One professor suggested filling the funnel bottle with a handful of sand to help filter the water.
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QuestionWould this be good for cantaloupes or other melons?Community AnswerNo. The fruit is too heavy and will pull the structure down. Similarly, pumpkins and other large varieties of squash also won't do well in a vertical garden. These types of plants prefer to sprawl over long, horizontal distances rather than vertical.
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QuestionCould I grow strawberries this way using bigger bottles?Community AnswerYou certainly could; you could use the same format but use gallon milk jugs. Each one can have three or four strawberry plants in it, just cut more "windows."
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Tips
- Wondering what to plant? This method can work for growing smaller veggies such as lettuce, arugula, dandelion greens, beets, radishes, beans, or peas. Also try various herbs or medicinal plants (aloe, parsley, mint, basil, oregano) and flowers (marigolds and zinnias do very well).Thanks
- If the watering bottle ceases to drip, check the drainage hole in the cap for clogging.Thanks
- Try adding a handful of sand to the watering bottle to slow the drip rate and allow more gradual and efficient watering.Thanks
Tips from our Readers
The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.
- In my experience, it's a good idea to tie the drip irrigator an inch higher so you can see the water drip and your young seedlings can also receive some sunlight.
- Don't handle wet vine plants. They are most vulnerable to damage when they're wet. In general, don't disturb vines any more than necessary.
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Things You Will Need
- 5 or more 2-liter soda bottles
- Box cutter or exacto knife
- Scissors
- Twine or baling wire (about 3 feet)
- Chain link fence, wire frame, or other supporting structure
- 3 or more seedlings, or seeds for 3+ plants
References
About This Article
Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 200,555 times.
Reader Success Stories
- "I like being able to repurpose something that most people see instantly as trash. And turning it in to something beautiful and kind to Mother Nature is one of the best things we can do to give back to this beautiful earth. Thank you for spreading knowledge like this with the world. May it inspire more of us to reuse more things like this instead of throwing them away. " ..." more
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"I like being able to repurpose something that most people see instantly as trash. And turning it in to something beautiful and kind to Mother Nature is one of the best things we can do to give back to this beautiful earth. Thank you for spreading knowledge like this with the world. May it inspire more of us to reuse more things like this instead of throwing them away. "
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"I had seen this in a YouTube video but could not remember how to fill the space at the top of each successive bottle before the next was inserted. I see now that there is an air space between the wall of the lower bottle and the neck of the bottle inserted above it."
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"I always like trying new things. I was quite excited about vertical gardens and always wanted to make one. This article is my first guide to start. I'm looking forward to make a beautiful one. I would like to know the best plants that suit this system."
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"I was left with 3 pallets the builders never came back for. I found instructions for making vertical planters from pallets, came across the soda bottle instructions, and have amalgamated the two. My planter with bottles attached looks lovely."
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"I love reading your articles on whatever topic I want to know about. I like the instructions with pictures! Thank you so much for all the know-how you share, keep it up!"
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