Modern Self Watering Planter

The Modern Self Watering Planter is a trough shaped container in UV resistant plastic, sold in two sizes and two colours, Black and Dune. A reservoir under the soil feeds water up to the roots through an aeration tray and wicking wells, so the mix holds steady moisture between refills. It is rated for indoor and outdoor use, which makes it the sensible pick for a balcony nobody gets to water daily.

Why you'll love it

• The reservoir does the watering. You top up a water store instead of wetting the surface, and the wicking wells release it as the roots take it.
• Overflow holes, not a sealed box. Excess water leaves through integrated overflow holes rather than pooling around the roots.
• Light enough to shift. The plastic body weighs very little empty, so a planted trough can still be repositioned on a deck.
• Made for Australian sun. UV resistant plastic in a textured finish, in Black or Dune, both suited to indoor styling as well as outdoor.

Sizes and what fits in them

Two sizes, each available in either colour. The soil volumes below include the space taken up by the reservoir system.

• Medium, 62cm by 20cm and 22cm high. Around 30 to 35 litres of mix. Herbs, compact shrubs and indoor foliage plants.
• Large, 77cm by 32.5cm and 37cm high. Around 65 litres. Feature plants, larger shrubs and mixed plantings.

Material, weathering and drainage

Material. UV resistant plastic with a textured surface, specified for Australian conditions. It needs no sealing, and a rinse or a wipe with a damp cloth is the whole cleaning routine.

Outdoors. The specification covers UV resistance and outdoor exposure but makes no frost claim, so in a hard frosting district treat this as a sun rated planter.

Drainage. Drainage holes are included, and the overflow holes above them cap how much water the reservoir will hold. Indoors that overflow still has to go somewhere, so stand the planter on a tray if it sits on timber or carpet.

What to expect when it arrives

Pots ship empty, without soil or plants, and the reservoir is built into the planter, so no liner or insert is needed. Water from the top for the first few weeks while roots grow down towards the wicking wells, then switch to topping up the reservoir. The 77cm Large holds a short run of screening plants along a balcony rail. Delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95.

Related pots and planting

• The rest of the self watering range
• Trough planters for linear spaces
• How to get container watering right
• Plants that handle life in a balcony pot