Part 1: Low Tech Irrigation (Olla Clay Pots) with Jean Fefer

Learn about Clay Pot (OLLA) Irrigation with Master Gardener Jean Fefer! Super Low Tech has some advantages - find out how to water your plants with minimal effort!
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[@elektron333]

Thanks for a wonderful presentation! You provided something many folks don't get to when presenting an idea. YOU BACKED UP YOUR PREMISE WITH DATA! Good experiment setup, as controlled as outside gets, great conclusion. Good job! This took time. I really appreciate that.

[@ban9640]

very informative thank u jean

[@rekster11]

So simple, yet so effective and efficient. Genius!

[@UrbanHarvestHouston]

Glad you like it!

[@kriegjaeger]

Excellent idea and demonstration! I've been considering something like this for a while and you've put it together AND demonstrated it quite well!

[@UrbanHarvestHouston]

Glad it was helpful!

[@whosme8221]

paint the top of the pots with a white eco frendly paint and it will stop a lot of the pots loosing water from the sun.

[@UrbanHarvestHouston]

Thanks, for the tip!

[@deveagleray7410]

Or simply cover with mulch..?

[@bisaya2]

thanks for the great presentation. to fix the reduced porosity, a cup of white vinegar swished around and allowed to stay inside the pot for a period of time will dissolve the mineral buildup on the inside surfaces. if we can clean our coffee maker pots with white vinegar there's no reason why we can't use vinegar to clean the inside surfaces of the olla pots

[@UrbanHarvestHouston]

Great tip!

[@elektron333]

We have really hard water! At the end of the season I soak hose ends, copper anything, drip ends, spray nozzles for misting in 5% vinegar . Make sure everything works, rinse well and store dry. They have been clogged hard in the spring if I don't do it. I learned the hard way $! Don't ask what it does to the plumbing... For clay pots with a salt line, dip a wet brush in baking soda and scrub at it. Let it dry and either soak or scrub with vinegar. Momma taught me that😊❤

[@KonstantinKnapp21071997]

Great video

[@jacqcerrudo2495]

Great, informative. This will help me a lot.

[@evabaker9186]

What an astounding difference in water usage from your sons "experiment"! Every gardener needs to move to this system to save our precious resource! One question for the cattle trough or plastic wine barrel or styrofoam containers...would they need drainage holes (for air to the soil and any excess water from rain? I feel i may have answered my own questions but just checking. Thank you.

[@UrbanHarvestHouston]

Yes! Drainage holes are drilled in water troughs and containers. Here in Houston, essential not to hold water after torrential rains.

[@xeedsenterprise505]

Very informative

[@UrbanHarvestHouston]

Glad you think so!

[@pajtognetti7531]

Hi. Great video information. I have a question for you: I used silicone to adhere two 13cm terracotta pots together; used that new sughe putty to seal the bottom of the olla (checked first to see if sealed properly and only losing water from pots in center; then burried it in my terracotta container for my pepper plant. My question is: while the plant seems to be doing very well, the top of the soil is usually wet!!! I keep the olla filled when the water level goes down- after a couple days since it’s super hot and humid, I imagine. But, I keep hearing how the top soil should be dry and only below should remain wet.... not sure what I’m doing wrong if the top soil is frequently moist- as if I just watered! I have other ollas in larger terracotta containers with my tomato plant, as well as in ground.... all similar! I would appreciate any suggestions or input you can offer. I really hope I’m not causing root rot or other issues (like fungus gnats) because of this moist topsoil. Thank you!

[@jeanyim6823]

Hello, enjoyed the presentation and I have a question. In the pictured shown at 7:24, what were the dimensions of the raised bed ? Approx what is the distance between the ollas for a 2 gallon size? Thank you !

[@UrbanHarvestHouston]

Hello, glad you liked it! The orchard bed is about 3 feet wide and the ollas are approximately 6' apart. Hope this helps!

[@missklibs3257]

Hello, Would you happen to have a parts list that you could share. I am installing a permaculture fruit tree guild and want to utilize ojas as the irrigation. Is it 1/2" tubing and tees and/or elbow in the last one?

[@pepperanne5927]

Thank you so much for sharing, I have been looking for a way to water environmentally using a gravity system. Can you give me a list of materials needed to connect the system? Thanks

[@UrbanHarvestHouston]

@pepperanne, thanks for your feedback! We do not have the list prepared for distribution, however we are working on it along with another live presentation with QandA with Jean Fefer, Ollas Presenter. Here is the video to part 2, installation: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aJecemWprtSMZpo

[@hannaroggentin3391]

Thanks a lot for this video! Is this system still in use? Or have you changed anything? Would you still recommend it? Thanks. ❤️🙏🏻☺️

[@nimajnebsurrab]

I'm curious about this as well. I've built several ollas and I'm trying it out, but I would like to know how others have fared using ollas.

[@jillliibus3190]

Can u tell how long after placement of the olla do the plant roots reach it an u no longer need to hand water please

[@bartden9668]

when i test pots like that, plugging up the hole and putting water in a pot, i can see that after a while, the pot has changed color on the outside. It looks 'damp' but i don't see any water-drops or something... So, i'm wondering is this'll work. The pots are terracotta and are unglazed. Is this normal and is this the case with your pots too ?

[@elektron333]

Prove to yourself that water comes through the clay. You see dampness, but water needs a reason to move through the clay. The plant roots wrap around and suck water from the pot. You might get a similar result pressing cotton against the pot. Hope this helps.

[@eyesofthecervino3366]

That's the result I got with the ollas I've made, and so far they've worked pretty well. I suspect how much water seeps through the walls may be influenced by how dry the air is, but I couldn't say for sure.

[@arthurwellsjr.4082]

Is it safe to be using caulk to seal the pots? Can toxins leach out & cause users to self poison themselves unknowingly? I like this idea but I know of better ways getting around the man made caulk.

[@UrbanHarvestHouston]

@arthurwellsjr.4082 please share your suggestions for alternatives to caulk!

[@dwaynemorris6190]

Is there an issue of caulking or silicone leaching into your vegetables?

[@johns7713]

I don't think so, because silicone is the product they use for the new cutting boards for food. Silica is a human nutrient.

[@anatomicallycorrectmuppets8180]

I did the same thing about ten years ago with Ollas and a drip line. I’ve found much better methods now, but it was a successful experiment

[@lpmoron6258]

What is did you land on?

[@terciarautenbach569]

Kindly share the better methods.

[@hannaroggentin3391]

Thanks for your comment! Would you please share your methods? ❤️🙏🏻☺️

[@nimajnebsurrab]

Could you please share the other methods you have found?

[@Bluemusic66]

Hi, I have a question. I’ve installed a few pots with a small tank similar to the setups in the video. The problem is I can’t fill the pots automatically. When the line going into the pot is sealed onto the pot with a stopper no air can escape so the water doesn’t feed into the pots. If I pull out the stopper to ‘break’ the air seal water will start dripping in. And if I sit the stopper on the edge of the hole the pot will fill but keep overflowing until I turn the tap off at the tank or re-seal the stopper. I feel as though I might be doing something wrong? Any clues? Thanks!