How to Solve Your Live Plants Dilemma

Set Up a Self Watering Irrigation System

Definition of Dilemma:

"A situation in which one has to choose between two or more... plans that are equally unsatisfactory: a difficult choice."

Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dilemma

To have live plants at home or not is a huge dilemma for many snowbirds, including myself. I have a collection of a dozen beautiful orchids that bloom twice a year, two leafy green tropical palms, plus a large self-sufficient Chinese yew that is fine with low light and low water.

Despite all of the fantastic benefits of live plants, it's tempting to permanently rehome all of them. I don't want to impose on someone to care for my plants while away for the winter. We have a neighbor who handles many issues while we are gone, but asking someone to care for live plants, even in the most minimal way is a bit much. First of all, they have to leave their home, travel or trudge over to my home -- usually when it's very cold -- gain entry access, figure out which plants need light, medium or high volume of water, then execute and return again in a week or two. Even if they get paid, it's more than likely not enough for the trouble.  

For several years, a family member cared for my orchids and she seemed fine with it, especially because we delivered them and then picked them up from her home in our same city. She also had orchids and it really wasn't a big deal to take on a few more. For her, it was a great reason to receive two extra visits from my husband and we've always helped her in many ways throughout the year. It was a reciprocal arrangement. However, one year everything changed. The family member no longer seemed to be OK with plant sitting. We returned to find many of my orchids had dried out. No explanation, no apology, just "here you go."  Apparently there was an issue, so I quit asking for help. I can take a hint.

The next several years my plants floundered while I was away. It's not that no one looked after them, but it was hit and miss for their care. If someone happened to stop in for something else, then they would possibly get water, otherwise they were on their own.

Recently, my Arizona cousin, Craig, shared his late grandmother's experience with plants while she wintered in Florida. I was eager to learn from Craig's grandma because I know many of her generation are and were very resourceful in many areas. Essentially, she created a terrarium for each potted plant with a large, clear plastic bag sealing the moist soil. Some of her smaller plants may have been entirely encased in plastic. By moving the plants out of direct sunlight, watering heavily before departing, then sealing the moisture, her plants were able to survive on their own for quite awhile. It's highly likely Craig's grandma also had an arsenal of additional tricks such as using moisture control potting soil and some of the glass bulbs that are filled with water, then inverted into the soil. She may also have had someone stop to check on them once in awhile, but they were largely on their own.

I love the idea of making terrariums, but decided to go one step further. Why not look into an indoor irrigation system? I had a few weeks to research, purchase and practice with the new product. I found that most hobby indoor watering systems are sold online rather than in an actual retail store. I selected a system with good reviews, decent quality construction and a reasonable price of slightly less than $50. The product included a dual powered water pump with timer, clear plastic tubing, couplers and drippers. It did not, however, include information about how to troubleshoot any problems and that applies to online or printed information.

When my irrigation system arrived, I didn't waste any time before setting it up. Off to a good start, or so I thought! I tested the manual mode and it was as expected. Now, to set up and test the auto mode. I programmed the number of seconds for water to flow into the tubing. At least 30 seconds is needed to fill the tubes and flow into all eight orchids. However, don't do what I did next. I set up the number of days between watering to two. This would allow me to monitor and adjust. Right? Wrong.

I became distracted with holiday preparations, then a multi-day visit from my sister, the actual holidays and by the time all of that took place, I realized there never was not even one successful automatic test. Only the manual mode was successful. As more time went by and still no success, I started to panic that my system either was non-functional in auto mode or I was committing user error. Or both. I could not get auto mode to function despite reading reviews, re-reading the manual for the tenth time and much trial and error.

Finally, with just a few days before departure, I successfully ran the automatic watering mode for my new system. I would have preferred to run tests with days rather than hours in between, but I'm confident that the new irrigation system is a great match for what I need while away. Although not fool proof, it's the next best thing and I'm super pleased to give it a try.