I wish the Earth Box had been around when I first started to grow vegetables back in 1978. At the time, I lived in a row house in South Philadelphia that had no yard. I grew everything in containers – large, plastic basins I bought at the hardware store – on my back porch. I drilled holes in the bottom of the containers to allow for drainage, but soon discovered that in order to prevent the soil from drying out too much during the summer I needed to water everything twice a day.
Years later, living outside of the city and with an in-ground garden, I found myself intrigued by the Earth Box, advertised as a maintenance-free, high-tech growing system that “controls soil conditions, eliminates guesswork and more than doubles the yield of a conventional garden – with less fertilizer, less water and virtually no effort.” What’s not to love?
I imagined what it would be like to grow vegetables in a weed-free environment, in sterile potting soil with no chance of soil-borne diseases. I envisioned how much easier gardening would be if I didn’t have to worry about watering.
The Earth Box kit came with the container, two plastic covers (elasticized around the edges to fit snugly over the edges of the box) and excellent directions for spacing requirements for a host of different plants.
Once I had the container filled with potting soil and the plants installed, the main task was remembering to keep the reservoir filled. The mechanics couldn’t have been simpler – all I had to do was put the end of the hose into the filler tube for the 3-gallon reservoir in the lower portion of the container. An overflow drainage hole made it impossible to over-water.
Overall, I was very pleased, and I’ve gotten good yields from my Earth Box. However, I’m very visual, and for me out of sight means out of mind. Because I couldn’t see how much water was in the reservoir, I alternately forgot to water or I added water when it wasn’t needed. So it didn’t actually save me much time. And I had to remember to water the container after days of heavy rain, because the plastic mulch cover kept the rain out.
The Earth Box does provide what it promises, and overall the results have been excellent. I think if you must garden in containers it’s a great way to go. But for me, even an Earth Box requires more work than my in-ground plantings. For starters, there’s some work involved in mixing up 2 cubic feet (about 60 quarts) of potting soil and getting it into the tub. In addition, I discovered that deer – a huge problem where I live – don’t care what kind of container a plant is growing in, and I ended up having to drag the Earth Box from my patio to inside my fenced-in garden.
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Pam Baxter is an organic vegetable gardener who lives in Kimberton, PA. She is a garden writer and columnist for the Daily Local News in West Chester, PA. She has written for The American Gardener (the magazine of the American Horticultural Association) and is the newsletter editor for the Valley Forge Audubon Society and the Green Valleys Association. Pam blogs at http://www.gardeningonearth.com. You may also follow her on Twitter: www.twitter.com/pamsgarden.
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Maybe it’s just me, but this page is only showing the image, I can’t see a post
It’s not just you Josh. Something happened and the post text got deleted. It should be fixed now.
OK. so, it basically worked as it was supposed to, with some minor reservations. I’m looking forward to my EarthBox experiment! Jeannie
So there’s no water level indicator that can be seen through the reservoir hole? That seems odd to me, since even the cheap-o $5 self-watering plastic pots I just picked up have this little yellow disc that floats on the water and is very visible.
My biggest problem with self-watering containers is that I don’t have a garden hose or any ability to attach one, so getting the water in the 1″ square filling hole is sorta messy
$60 for a fancy 2 cubic foot self-watering container is out of my budget range right now anyhow.
Christy–While I’ve never used an EarthBox, I do other have self watering containers. I just use a watering can with a narrow spout. You can usually find them near the houseplants. I bought mine for $2.99 I think.
A couple of suggestions: buy a large funnel, the kind from an auto parts store are good. Leave it in the fill pipe. Don’t worry about the level of water in the reservoir. Just fill the EarthBox on a fixed schedule. The overflow drain hole will prevent over watering. When comparing the effort of in-ground vs. sub-irrigated planters (SIPs) like the EarthBox remember the heavy duty labor you did when you tilled the ground. I suggest that SIPs are a much easier way to go regarding physical effort. They are an excellent solution for seniors. SIPs also produce more vegetables per square foot than any other method while saving water and time. This post is most helpful. More people, particularly in the city where space is limited, should know about SIPs but don’t.
I agree that Earthboxes are relatively expensive. I did find a homemade remedy that can be assembled for around $6 per unit.
http://www.seattleoil.com/Flyers/Earthbox.pdf
EarthBoxes are not cheap, I agree; however, I’ve had mine for 8 years and they are as sturdy as ever. The inexpensive DIY tubs get brittle, then break within a season or two.
Thanks for this post.
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