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How should I irrigate 5 gallon buckets

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I am putting a few of my peppers into 5 gallon buckets that dont have holes. How many holes should I drill and how big do you guys make them? Also, is it best to hand water or set up a dripping sprinkler thing? Thankyou
 
If you don't soak them, they won't need irrigation. I hand water them and then let them dry themselves out before watering again.
 
ya if you just have a few plants to water irrigation might just be a waste of money and time.
 
as far as holes maybe 5 or 6 they would only need to be the size of a dime.

dripping sprinkler thing :rofl: thats one name for it.
 
If you can do the drip that's the way to go. Handful of 1/4" holes or so won't hurt to be safe. Look into root pouches also for next yr, cheap and air prunes roots and drains very well.
 
The fluffier your soil is and more sand, the fewer the holes you need.  Tiny holes seem to clog up too easily so I make them about 1/2" dia. and 6 of them... just grabbing a drill bit close to that without reading what size is stamped on it.  Split point bits make a cleaner hole in plastic.
 
Dripping sprinkler will work if on a timer but you don't want a continuous drip as the soil surface should be allowed to dry out so it doesn't promote fungus or insect infestation.  For potted plants I just use a plastic coffee can dipped into a rain barrel or bucket full of water, or a hose if I have one out which I usually do once the warmer months of summer arrive.
 
I'm for hand watering in pots.  I think a lot of the time they dry out at different rates.
 
for holes,like Sic said about six holes at least half inch.
 
like 4-6 1/2 in diameter holes. i got tired of hand watering my 50 pots so i did 1gph drippers with a siphon mixer for nutes.
 
I hate watching my water run out just as fast as I put it in. Especially since I know that most of the soil is still dry. I experimented with this system last year and I had great results so I am doing it again this year. I drill only 2 small holes on opposite sides of my bucket. I used a 1/4 inch bit but I reamed it out to make the hole a little bigger.  I also made a 1/2 inch hole higher up on the bucket to prevent over filling. I poured in a gallon of water and drilled the larger drain hole at the water line. I also put in a 2 liter bottle with the bottom cut off. Both the bottle and the smaller holes are intended to slow down the drainage. By slowing down the flow it allows more time for the water to absorb. Even in the heat of summer I could sometimes get away with only watering every other day. I used a lot less water a lot more efficiently. Just make sure that your bottom drainage holes are as low to the bottom as you can get them and make sure that they don't clog. Also make sure that you are using a soil mix that drains well.
BucketWatering_zpse5c7e5b1.jpg
 
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