A DIY PVC Fertilizer System

Fertilizing the soil is an important part of gardening. It helps to ensure that you grow the largest, healthiest plants. Instead of purchasing fertilizing equipment, you can make your own fertilizer application system at home out of common parts. You can save even more money and time by combining it with an irrigation system, so that the fertilizer is delivered in the plants’ water. A drip irrigation fertilizer system requires no pumps, no electricity and is the most water-efficient system that you can use.

PVC pipes that are as long as a garden row, one for each row in the garden, approximately 1 inch in diameter
Marker
Drill
2 caps for every pipe, sized to fit the pipe
As many 5-gallon buckets as there are pipes
Flexible plastic tube, 2 feet in length for every PVC pipe, at least ½ inch in diameter
Utility knife
Silicone caulk
Caulking gun
Filter washer, sized to fit the flexible tube
Fertilizer

Instructions

- 1
  Lay a PVC pipe along one of the garden rows. Make a mark on the pipe next to each plant.
- 2
  Drill two adjacent holes at every mark on the pipe. Make them either 3/32 inches or 1/8 inches in diameter. These are the drip holes. Water and fertilizer will leak out of them slowly, keeping the ground around the plants constantly supplied with water and fertilizer.
- 3
  Coat one end of the pipe with PVC cement. Put a cap on that end and allow the cement to dry.
- 4
  Drill a hole in the side wall of one of the buckets, near the bottom. Make the hole the same diameter as the flexible plastic tube. Cut 2 feet of tube with the utility knife and insert one end of the tube into this hole. Seal the joint with silicone caulk.
- 5
  Drill another hole in the wall of the bucket, this time near the top. This one lets air into the bucket, allowing the water to flow freely out of it at the bottom. Make it the same diameter as the previous hole. Placing this hole on the side of the bucket rather than the top prevents leaves, dirt and other contaminants from accidentally falling into the water/fertilizer mix.
- 6
  Drill a hole in one of the end caps for the PVC pipe. Make it the same diameter as the flexible tube. Insert the free end of the tube from the bucket into this cap. Coat the end of the PVC pipe that you drilled holes in with PVC cement. Stick the cap on the end. Seal the joint between the cap and the tube with caulk. Allow the caulk and cement to dry.
- 7
  Place the filter washer on the end of the tube that is in the bucket. This washer will keep the system from getting clogged up. Fill the bucket with a mixture of water and fertilizer.
- 8
  Lay the pipe along one of the garden rows. The fertilizer solution will slowly seep out of the pipe and into the ground near the plants. Make additional sets of drip lines for the other rows in the same manner.

Homemade Cloche Conduit Plumbing

What Causes Vinyl Lattice to Crack?

Garden Tools & Supplies