DIY Self-Watering Wine Bottle Herb Garden

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It’s nice to have fresh herbs growing in the kitchen windowsill, but it’s not always easy to remember to water them. Here is a neat DIY project from Design Sponge that solves that problem, and it’s a great way to recycle used bottles. 

You can use beer bottles, wine bottles, and even plastic bottles if you don’t want to mess with cutting the glass. I think the glass bottles make beautiful windowsill planters and they are more durable than plastic.

To make one of these yourself, you will need a bottle, a square piece of window screen (about 2″ x 2″), a piece of string, potting soil, and herbs of your choice.

Photo: Design Sponge

The first step is to cut the bottle.  There are many tutorials online showing different ways to cut glass bottles, but the one that seems to be the easiest just uses acetone, string, fire, and cold water.  Here is a video to demonstrate this method:

Once the bottle is cut, you’ll want to sand the edges down a bit so they aren’t too sharp. Next, cut a hole in the center of the screen large enough for the string to pass through. 

Double up the string so that both ends remain loose and pass the middle loop through the hole in the screen. Tie a knot large enough that it can’t pass back through the screen.

Next, run the string down the neck of the bottle top and let the screen rest at the top. This will be the planter. 

The loose ends of the string will hang down into the bottom half of the bottle, which will hold the reservoir of water.

Photo: Design Sponge

Fill the space above the screen with dirt and add your plant. Fill the bottom of the bottle with water and place the top half into it. 

Make sure the string sits down in the water. This will act as a wick to draw water up into the soil.

Photo: Design Sponge

That’s it!  See the full tutorial at Design Sponge.