Wicking bed

[wickwellgardens]

Hi fellow gardeners I wanted to share my experience with wicking beds after creating my first one earlier this year (pic attached) 

As someone who struggled with Sydney’s weather I love them they make the most annoying parts of gardening a breeze:

- Water Savings – Only refill the reservoir every 10-14 days (vs. daily watering before).
- Healthier Plants – No more wilted greens during heatwaves – the self-watering really works!
- Fewer Weeds – The mulch layer + less surface moisture keeps them at bay.

I used untreated cypress pine for mine (no chemicals near veggies), but I’m curious – has anyone else tried wicking beds? What worked or didn’t work for you?

P.S. For anyone considering them, the only ‘con’ I found was in weather we've been having with so much rain I used a small outlet pipe that could get clogged sometimes. I have now used a wider pipe and lowered it into the reservoir a bit to stop debris getting into the pipe.

Materials

Soil: Scotts osmocote plus 50L tomato planting mix

https://www.bunnings.com.au/scotts-osmocote-plus-50l-tomato-vegetable-and-herb-premium-planting-mix_... 

Geotexile:

https://www.bunnings.com.au/pillar-1-8-x-10m-grey-geotextile-drainage-membrane-mat_p0126613

Ag-Pipe

https://www.bunnings.com.au/reln-stretch-ag-pipe-100mm-x-8m-slotted-and-socked_p4770281

Bracket

https://www.bunnings.com.au/carinya-230-x-40-x-40-x-2mm-hot-dipped-galvanised-reinforcing-angle-brac...

Bolts

https://www.bunnings.com.au/zenith-m8-x-50mm-hot-dip-galvanised-hex-head-bolts-and-nuts-25-pack_p226...

Tools

Mitre saw

https://www.bunnings.com.au/ozito-1600w-210mm-8-corded-compound-mitre-saw_p0025645

Steps

Step 1

Cut the timber to size you would like the bed. I use 3 150mm pieces high for a 450mm height of the bed which is ideal for even wicking.

Step 2

Use the L brackets and bolts to create your garden bed. Drill a hole in the side of the bed 200mm from the bottom. insert outlet pipe.

Step 3

Use food-grade liner to line the bed and create the water reservoir. Insert the Ag-pipe in to the bottom of the garden bed after cutting lots of holes for water so get out. Leave one end of the ag-pipe over the top of the bed. Load in scoria rock 200mm high in the bottom of the liner on top of the ag-pipe. Cover the rock and ag pipe in the geo textile (ensuring that one of the ag pipe is still out the top of the bed).

Step 4

Fill in with soil on top of the geo textile to the top of the bed still leaving the ag pipe poking out the top. This will become where you put in the water.

Step 5

Plant all the fruit and veg you want and ensure you keep filling the reservoir with water every couple of weeks.

[JacobZ]

Hi @wickwellgardens,

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community, it is fantastic to have you with us.

Self-watering, wicking garden beds are a brilliant way to take care of your plants. They are perfect for reducing the need for more regular watering.

Out of curiosity, do you have any photos of how you laid the agi pipe at the base? Did you just snake it around the bottom of the bed? 

Your wicking garden bed looks fantastic, and I am sure it works extremely well. Thank you for sharing.

Jacob

[wickwellgardens]

Hi Jacob

Unfortunately i don't have any photos of this one as it was a very early attempt by me. For this one I did end up trying to cover as much of the bottom of the bed using a snake. We have tried a few different alternatives and worked out easier ways to using a wicking system now. But wicking beds do work amazingly and cant recommend them enough!

[Herrenovacation]

Thanks so much for sharing @wickwellgardens 

I have saved this in my bookmarks as I have wanted to build some wicking beds for quite a while maybe with inspiration from this post I will finally get around to it.