Friendly Latte Planter

thingiverse

This self-watering planter uses a 16-oz coffee cup as a water reservoir. Perfect for your kitchen countertop or windowsill. Your thoughts are welcome! Plant-friendly Self-watering provides constant moisture and prevents soil from being compacted by overwatering, and holes provide oxygen to the roots. An optional attachment site for a flexible LED light allows happier plants in low-light areas. Human-friendly The large inlet makes it easy to water, and big reservoir keeps your plant alive during vacations or forgetful weeks. You can use a small G-clamp to attach the base to your counter edge or windowsill and prevent plant catastrophes. Printer-friendly No support needed for printing. Water is held in the coffee cup, so no worries about leaky prints. Instructions What you will need: Printed parts (planter base and top). Consider food-safe filament for growing edibles. A 16-oz coffee cup - This planter was designed around a 16-oz Dart-brand clear plastic cup. The cup is ~137mm tall and has a max diameter of ~98mm. There's a few mm wiggle room in the design for similar cups. (Design could be scaled to accommodate other containers) Wicking - The self-watering planter relies on a wick to draw water up from the reservoir to the potting mix. Capillary action! Strips of a cotton T-shirt work fine, so does nylon rope. Put a knot in it and feed through the hole in the planter top. It should be long enough to reach to the bottom of the cup. Potting mix - Don't use regular dirt or even commercial "garden soil", you need something with high water transport such as potting mix or coconut coir. Optional G-clamp for attachment - can buy one, or print one (such as http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:30040) Optional extra lighting - The planter base has an optional site to attach a gooseneck USB-powered LED lamp, such as the Daffodil ULT05. You will need 4x M3 bolts to screw the printed "little clip" part to the base. Plant - Choose a plant that will thrive under your lighting conditions. Basil and thyme need tons of light, chives and cilantro need moderate amount, some houseplants need less. If you are using additional lighting, most plants are happy with 24/7 light but some such as spider plant are not Plant care note - Due to high humidity within the cup, you may see development of hanging roots coming out of planter holes. It is recommended to cut them off to encourage more healthy root growth within potting mix.