It was nice and wet a few days ago and today it's dry and wilty.
(Nasturtium seedlings; they don't shade the surface yet.) The basket is
hanging in bright shade and gets a little sun early in the morning.

Would spraying the surface with a little soapy water help?

Thanks,
Bob

On Sat, 27 May 2006 12:08:14 -0500, zxcvbob wrote:

> It was nice and wet a few days ago and today it's dry and wilty.
> (Nasturtium seedlings; they don't shade the surface yet.) The basket is
> hanging in bright shade and gets a little sun early in the morning.
>
> Would spraying the surface with a little soapy water help?
>
> Thanks,
> Bob

That should work Bob. When I did nursery work we would soak the baskets
in a bucket or tub untill they re-wetted themselves. That's a funny
looking sentence.... guess I need more coffee!

--
http://resources.ywgc.com/info/

"zxcvbob" <zxcvbob [at] charter.net> wrote in message
news:4drfcfF1bg0hfU1 [at] individual.net...
> It was nice and wet a few days ago and today it's dry and wilty.
> (Nasturtium seedlings; they don't shade the surface yet.) The basket is
> hanging in bright shade and gets a little sun early in the morning.
>
> Would spraying the surface with a little soapy water help?
>
> Thanks,
> Bob

It may be better to soak the basket in a tub of water until it's thoroughly
soaked. I replaced all my baskets with hanging plastic pots. They're much
easier to water and stay damp longer.

Mindful wrote:
> "zxcvbob" <zxcvbob [at] charter.net> wrote in message
> news:4drfcfF1bg0hfU1 [at] individual.net...
> > It was nice and wet a few days ago and today it's dry and wilty.
> > (Nasturtium seedlings; they don't shade the surface yet.) The basket is
> > hanging in bright shade and gets a little sun early in the morning.
> >
> > Would spraying the surface with a little soapy water help?
> >
> > Thanks,
> > Bob
>
> It may be better to soak the basket in a tub of water until it's thoroughly
> soaked. I replaced all my baskets with hanging plastic pots. They're much
> easier to water and stay damp longer.


Yes, that's excellent advice.

Soil is like a sponge.

Place a completely dry sponge under the faucet and it takes a long
while before it absorbs water.

Place a slighly damp sponge under the faucet and it immediately takes
up water.

This is a property of surface tension in water, where water molecules
attract other water molecules, in effect pulling water into the
sponge/soil.

Soaking the pot in a bucket of water, or even the kitchen sink will do
the trick.

Also, don't shy away from mixing things into the potting soil to
improve water retention.

You may even place a wet sponge or two at the bottom of the pot, on top
of a gravel mixture if your prefer.

-Jason

Lucky wrote:
> Mindful wrote:
>> "zxcvbob" <zxcvbob [at] charter.net> wrote in message
>> news:4drfcfF1bg0hfU1 [at] individual.net...
>>> It was nice and wet a few days ago and today it's dry and wilty.
>>> (Nasturtium seedlings; they don't shade the surface yet.) The basket is
>>> hanging in bright shade and gets a little sun early in the morning.
>>>
>>> Would spraying the surface with a little soapy water help?
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>> Bob
>> It may be better to soak the basket in a tub of water until it's thoroughly
>> soaked. I replaced all my baskets with hanging plastic pots. They're much
>> easier to water and stay damp longer.
>
>
> Yes, that's excellent advice.
>
> Soil is like a sponge.
>
> Place a completely dry sponge under the faucet and it takes a long
> while before it absorbs water.
>
> Place a slighly damp sponge under the faucet and it immediately takes
> up water.
>
> This is a property of surface tension in water, where water molecules
> attract other water molecules, in effect pulling water into the
> sponge/soil.

That's why I mentioned the soap.

> Soaking the pot in a bucket of water, or even the kitchen sink will do
> the trick.

I can do that now, while the plants are small. Once they are streaming
three feet over the sides, it won't be practical.

I watered them from the top this morning and most of the water just ran
through. But I checked it a couple of hours later and the little bit of
water that had soaked in had spread all throughout the soil, and it was
receptive to more water now.

Best regards,
Bob

"zxcvbob" <zxcvbob [at] charter.net> wrote in message
news:4drfcfF1bg0hfU1 [at] individual.net...
> It was nice and wet a few days ago and today it's dry and wilty.
> (Nasturtium seedlings; they don't shade the surface yet.) The basket is
> hanging in bright shade and gets a little sun early in the morning.
>
> Would spraying the surface with a little soapy water help?
>
> Thanks,
> Bob


After the plant shades the soil, you may find it still gets bone dry if it's
in the sun all day. Hanging baskets, in general, are about half as large as
they should be.

it is a good idea to place a high absorbent diaper on the bottom. it has those water
holding crystals and the plastic facing down. the watering will hold better. Ingrid

zxcvbob <zxcvbob [at] charter.net> wrote:

>It was nice and wet a few days ago and today it's dry and wilty.
>(Nasturtium seedlings; they don't shade the surface yet.) The basket is
>hanging in bright shade and gets a little sun early in the morning.
>
>Would spraying the surface with a little soapy water help?
>
>Thanks,
>Bob



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