I have not tried the wicking system you mentioned because as you probably know, the black or white tray often will spring a leak within a year.

Yes, there may be bug problems as well. If one of those plants has bugs, they will very soon all have them.

I purchased Glad type refrigerator containers and cut holes in the lids for the wick to go through.

Don't forget, when you wick, you need to lighten the soil because the plant will be constantly using water so you need very good drainage.

Mayonaise jars work very well but you can only use the one size pot to fit into it. If you put the top on top, it will surely fall off.

I have 7 light stands, all different types. At least one has trays that hold my trays of plants. I was able to put a sheet of wicking hardware over the two large trays and insert the wicks of plants. This certainly saves time watering but again, the plants are all subject to any bug any one of the plants might be carrying.

The black tray system you mentioned I did try by using longer cloth which went down into the tray of water with plants sitting on the constantly damp cloth.

Nancy

Thanx Nancy,
Right now, I wick all my solo cups with baby food jars.
My 3 and 4 inch pots are sitting on the top of the deli containers that I purchased for a quarter each (container & lid) from the deli department.

The lid is recessed so that there isn't any spillover when I pour the water in the lid. It all runs through a hole that I have cut on the very edge of the lid. I also cut a hole in the center where the wick goes down. I can go over 14 days with this container but only 7 or 8 days with the BF jars.

What I find eating my time is lifting each solo cup from the BF jar and filling that little jar. Doing 80 plants eats up 20 to 35 minutes in a blink of an eye.....considering I have to take a look at each plant when I lift it.

My anticipation was that I could pour the whole thing in the edge of that undertray and each wick would soak up what it needs as opposed to filling each jar individually.

Am I not going to spread bugs just as easily if all of them are sitting within 6 or 7 inches of each other right there on the shelves? Or are the possibilities increased when they share the same water source?

I think I hear you saying the individual take more time but in your opinion/experience - it's preferable?

Dora

Hi,

I have used a tray a wicking system similar to what you described. As Nancy said pests can be a problem if just one of the plants on the tray has something. Otherwise it's a good method.

The advantages of the tray method is that it puts a lot more moisture into the air as there is a lot more surface area on the water. That's also a disadvantage because you have to fill up the tray way more often. Another advantage is that it's much easier to fill up a tray than it is to fill up a Food Container.

I don't think there's any difference between wicking on a tray and wicking on individual reservoirs besides the pest problem. It's just a matter of convenience.

I would also be concerned about flimsy trays. The Violet Showcase has some substantial wicking trays and the fluorescent light egg crate sheets you describe. Click on the link of "Growing Supplies" and on the growing supply page go down about a page and click on "Growing Supplies Catalog" . The trays are on page 3 of the PDF.

I hope this helps.

Larry

Hey Larry,
Those green wicking trays pictured from the link you shared (link didn't work but I googled the words) are the exact trays that come with the plant stand that I'm picking up in the morning.

How cool is that?

Dora

Sorry about the link. Here it is again The Violet Showcase. This time I just linked to the pdf.

Yes, that is cool! Looks like you will be all set.

Larry

Thanks for the link and comments, Larry. I am also looking for a way to be more efficient and save time in the way that I wick water. I am currently using butter and cream cheese type containers with holes in thier tops as my water reservoirs, but the disadvantages is that they have to be refilled often and not being clear I am constantly having to individually check them to make sure that they have not gone dry. This can be very time consuming and in looking to expand my violet collection will become more of a burden in the future.

I am looking to purchase some egg grates that are 24"x48" which will cover the tops of four 11" X 22" Permanest Trays that I will use to set my wicked plants on. These trays and egg crate will fit on the four foot long by two feet deep shelves of my lighted plant stand. This should save me lots of time from having to check and fill individual containers, and I can clearly see when the water is getting low in the 11" X 22" trays. The trays and the egg crate that I am hoping to purchase can be found at the following link. I am thinking that the cost is a little less than buying trays with their own individual egg crates attached to them. Either way is not cheap, but in the long run I think that I will enjoy the time that I am now spending watering.

Thanks!

Curtis

http://indoorgardensupplies.com/accessories-crates-c-108_130.html?osCsid=cd37210c2ba7056c3aebff5d8cf0c89c