Water Jug Cottage

With cities and municipalities reducing the amount of water available for non-essential uses such as washing cars, watering lawns and so on it’s up to us as responsible xeric gardeners to come up with innovative techniques to make the water we do have go further.

Water conservation will soon be a way of life, not just an option for gardeners with limited water from a well - it's become a reality even for those that are on the seemingly endless supply of city water.

One valuable technique used in xeriscaping design is to water only those plants that really need it. All other plants in the landscape must be able to survive on what Mother Nature allots in the form of rainfall.

Choose fruit trees and bushes, any food producing plant, or those newly planted and give them a special allowance of water.

You can guide drip irrigation to them using a hose from a tap or rain barrel, or for temporary or seasonal extra water, place a plastic milk jug or other container beside them with a tiny hole in the bottom. Filling the jug with water once a day will enable the plant to uptake the moisture slowly over the span of several hours.

However, this is going to severely detract from your lovely xeric garden display, having ugly plastic jugs all over the place. So disguise them! Here’s a unique idea for prettying up your irrigation system by recycling a milk jug into a rustic cottage.

You will need:

• Plastic milk, detergent, vinegar or bleach jug, preferably one otherwise destined for a landfill.

• Bark pieces; Douglas fir, other coniferous bark or birch bark.
  
• Sharp knife, jigsaw, coping or hand saw, and a pair of craft scissors.

• Glue – carpenters white glue, hot glue sticks and hot glue gun, or two part epoxy.

• Roofing felt, rubber roofing or metal roof flashing.

• Small pebbles for chimney.

• Small glass tiles or mirror for windows.

• Shingles or other thin wood or twigs for door and window shutters, cut to shape with the saw.

How to Make your Water Jug Cottage

• Wash out a plastic milk jug, bleach jug or other container. Drill a tiny hole close to the bottom of the jug, or use a hot needle to melt a hole. One small hole is usually adequate, you may have to experiment to see how fast the water drips out, and adjust according to how much water each plant needs.

• Cut the bark pieces about 3cm shorter than the jug, attach with the glue, leaving 3cm at the bottom of the jug exposed to be able to insert into the ground to stop it from tipping over.

• Cut the roofing felt or rubber roofing to fit as a roof, attach with glue, making sure to glue the seam, too. If using metal flashing, use care when cutting as the edges will be sharp. You will need tin snips for cutting the metal flashing. You can also cut the felt or rubber roofing into shingles and attach in a strip.Trim to fit with scissors.

• Glue the pebbles for the chimney on.

• Add small thin pieces of wood or twigs for a door, glue on a bead or round pebble for a handle.

• Glue on glass tiles or mirror for windows. You can cut the bark away for a recessed door or window if you’re confident enough in your carpentry ability, or just glue the door or windows on top of the bark.

Make several water jug cottages for a miniature village, and your camouflaged watering system serves two purposes – a custom supply of water to your plants, and a fun look for your garden.

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Sustainable Gardening

Rustic Crafts

Xeriscaping