Here are some of my favorite products for semi-hydroponics.
I’ve recently catalogued this page within my Amazon Influencer page as Idea Lists. It’s a lot easier to edit and change on the fly. You can access it here. Mouse-over the bottom right of every product for how I use it / notes on the product.
LECA and other Inorganic Medium
Hydroton LECA
This is the standard LECA that I use, and is readily available in the US market. I think this and a few other brands are actually the same product, but branded differently. For example the IKEA LECA brand looks almost indistinguishable from Hydroton. You can buy this via Amazon but check out your local hydroponics store, they will usually have better prices and support your local business!
Hydrocrunch LECA
I like this Hydrocrunch brand for plants that require a drier environment, such as succulents and hoyas. The LECA beads have a slip coat on, likely applied after it’s been fired, which makes it less porous and wicks a little less than Hydroton. I usually keep both Hydroton and Hydrocrunch on hand for different plant needs. Again, buy this locally at your hydroponics store, you can also find this brand at Home Depot.
Pumice
Pumice, like LECA, is an absorbent and wicking non-organic medium that has the same properties of LECA. Different pumice sizes will yield different results in wicking strength. These are slightly on the larger side, there are also smaller sizes that can be found in your local hydroponics store as well. I use these to amend my LECA if I need more wicking power. Smaller sized pumice (or LECA) can also be used to root plants.
Decorative Pots
I’ve been searching for the perfect pot for semi-hydroponics for a few years, and finally decided to work with a manufacturer to make them! You can find the LECA Addict Perfect pot here. My pots have a clear inner pot and an opaque outer pot and there’s nothing quite like it on the market right now.
Self-Watering Pot (4” and 6”)
This has been the best pot I’ve found on Amazon and most of my plants are in this setup. I love the wicking pots for a few reasons - one is the large reservoir so if I do travel, I can have peace of mind that my plants will be ok for a longer period of time. The other is that it’s less messy and I can inspect the plant without water leaking out of the drainage hole. The only downside is that it’s not see-through, but if you squint and put up the pot to the light and swish it around a bit, you can see the water level! The price is good too. The 4” is $2.25 each and 6” is $3.25 each. Word of caution, these are smaller than advertised due to the reservoir size.
Hanging / Compact Self-Watering Pot
These are exactly like the ones above but made for hanging to a peg board. If you build IKEA Milsbo / Fabrikor greenhouses, these are great. Sometimes I don’t even hang them up, and I place the flat side against the glass. These will be great for against narrow window wells as well to save some space.
Transparent Self-Watering Pot
These are ok for those of you who are super bad at watering by allowing you to see very clearly how much water is left in the reservoir. They are a bit more expensive than the other option, but the material is sturdy and the design is good. However word of caution, having a transparent pot leads to more algae growth in the water reservoir. However by having this wicking method, cleaning up is actually pretty easy. Every month that I flush, I wash out the base and remove the algae. In other setups where the water is in the LECA, algae removal isn’t so easy.
Self-Watering Pot without Wick
I like this option as well but a little less than the wicking options. For one I can’t pick a plant up and inspect it without worrying about the water reservoir. But at this price point of $2.40 per pot, it really is a great middle ground between the 4” and 6” options above. This has no wick, so the LECA in the pot needs to make contact with the reservoir in the bottom, but I’ve had no issues with wicking, these pots are great.
Deluxe Self-Watering Pot
These are by far my favorite pots out of the bunch. The construction is sturdy, the aesthetics is awesome (comes in a few colors), and there’s a transparent window to show water level without exposing the entire base to sunlight. These come in at $4.75 per pot but they are large and will fit a 4-6” plant no problem.
Largest Pot
These are the larger version of the one to the left except they are slightly larger and has more color availability. They come in at $3 per pot, and all of my biggest plants live in here. I have not been able to find larger pots that are in this price range but I will keep looking. For larger plants, I will use an IKEA cache pot (a ceramic or plastic pot without drainage) and use a nursery pot with a wick to fit inside. IKEA pots are awesome in terms of fit with standard net-pots. It’s because hydroponics is very popular in Europe, this is why IKEA pots don’t have drainage. :D
Hack Pots
24oz Deli Containers
These deli containers are amazing as a “hack pot”. What I do is use a soldering iron and melt holes in the bottom for drainage. Combined with the 32oz Deli Container you can make your own wicking pot. You can also place these pots inside of existing non-draining pots (but I find nursery pots to be perfectly acceptable here). The other amazing thing about these pots is that they are great for orchid growers who like to keep an eye on the root system. Instead of buying a $4 clear orchid pot, you can buy a stack of these at 58 cents per pot.
32oz Deli Containers
These are great to use along side the 24” Deli Containers and a wick as a cache pot, or you can use them standalone by making a drainage hole 1/3 of the way up from the bottom with the soldering iron. These come in at 70 cents per pot, but another option is to find a local Pho or Noodle place near by that uses these containers and reuse them! These are much more common in grocery store deli counters as well. The 24 oz is harder to find in the wild for reuse. There is also an option of a 16 oz deli container that is also more prevalent in the wild, you can use those with the 24 oz in a similar drainage pot / cache pot setup.
3” Net Pots
Net pots are awesome for Semi-Hydroponics setups. These will fit into any standard mug, ramekin, or even plastic disposable cups. I use these for smaller plants, orchids, and cuttings. Once the plant has grown out of this, you may need to cut through the plastic net pot because roots love to grow out of these holes.
Coming soon…. Grow lights, fertilizers, Misc plant related items