Survival of the Fittest

Summer is upon us and that means Hubs and I are a-travelin' like nobody's business. Its great fun spending weekends with friends and family enjoying long lazy days at the lake and saoking up the sunshine; It is not great coming home to sad wilted plants. After one weekend of survival of the fittest plants and hoping for rain I decided to take matters into my own hands and become a "faux Mother Nature". Enter The Plant Nanny. A simple and inexpensive way to keep my plants well hydrated without having to pester anyone to water.

On one of my many treks to a local garden center, I came upon The Plant Nanny. I picked up a six pack for my container plants and the HydroSpike watering system for my planter box and my thirsty hydrangea bush. There are other options, glass globes and the like, but they run a bit pricier and work better if you only have a pot or two.

This is just about the easiest thing to use. Just stick the terra cotta stake in the soil near your plant and screw the plastic stake onto the top of a regular water bottle. Fill the water bottle up with H2O and stick in the stake. I keep the stakes in the pots and the spikes on the water bottles and just stick 'em under the faucet on my way out for the weekend and they are good to go!

Not only have I been using these for the past two weekends and keeping my plants happy, but they are thriving and looking better than ever! Now keep in mind, I have a smaller city garden so if yours spans a true backyard, this may not be an ideal solution for you.