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WaterUps® News and Blogs
What to do in your wicking bed this month – April 21
This post will focus on how to grow a more diverse range of vegetables using seeds rather than seedlings.
WaterUps® planters in one of Australia’s driest capital cities
In 2020, when Hobart Airport needed to reorganise and expand their drop off and pick up parking facilities, they also wanted to be able to showcase a ‘greener’ sustainable environment. To achieve this they used WaterUps
WaterUps® co-host Sydney Edible Garden Trail
Eric Sturman from WaterUps joined Kosta as a co-host of the Sydney Edible Garden trail 2021
WaterUps® and Angus Stewart conduct wicking bed workshop
Angus Stewart and Ian Collins from WaterUps® held a wicking bed workshop for TasWater’s ‘Water Source’ event at Macquarie Point in Hobart.
What to do in your wicking bed this month – March 21
This post will focus on the last chance you will get to sow a few Autumn and Winter crops in your wicking beds and what to plant.
What to do in your wicking bed this month – Feb 21
This issue will give you heaps of practical advice on growing late summer vegetables.
WaterUps® new aluminium wicking tree planter
WaterUps® launches new Aluminium tree planter with WaterUps® wicking system. Planters have self levelling feet a centre base overflow system and can be moved with a forklift.
Angus Stewart conducts kangaroo paw trials in WaterUps® wicking bed
Angus reveals the successful results of his kangaroo paw growing trials in WaterUps wicking beds.
The new WaterUps® wicking planter now available for $69.50
We have finished the first production run of our new WaterUps® square planters and they are now available for purchase.
WaterUps® helps in Kangaroo Island bush fire recovery
After the bush fires ravaged many parts of Kangaroo Island, ABC Gardening Australia presenter, Sophie Thomson, arranged a major garden rescue for the island.
What to do in your wicking bed this month – Jan 21
This month’s issue will give you heaps of practical advice on growing late summer vegetables.
What to do in your wicking bed this month – Dec 20
This post is designed to be the first in a series, that will give you heaps of practical advice on how to ensure that your wicking bed performs optimally. We will try to address the different challenges that may be faced by the different climatic zones across Australia over the course of the year.
Eric Sturman joins WaterUps®
Eric Sturman brings his passion for plants and architectural design skills to WaterUps®
WaterUps® new square planter is here!
WaterUps®will commence production of its new square planter wicking bed in late Dec 2020
Basix and WaterUps®
By installing WaterUps® wicking cells in the garden and around the home, it will reduce the size of the water tank needed to comply with the water efficiency requirements for Basix.
Sustainability ‘Planting’ Itself at St Luke’s Grammar School
Recently, teachers and students with a passion for the environment came together to create a sustainability group within the Senior School at St Luke’s. Our goal is to help our environment and community by making St Luke’s more sustainable.
WaterUps® in my school – Bondi Public
This month we have been lucky enough to have a guest contributor. Fiona de Souza has been responsible for the kitchen garden at Bondi Public school. We thought that the Bondi Public case study would be of interest to other schools, and maybe help them with the building of their own school gardens.
WaterUps® launches new raised wicking bed range
WaterUps® has launched its new Australian made Oasis range of steel raised wicking beds.
Successful tool trial for new WaterUps® square planter
WaterUps® will be adding a new square wicking planter for balcony gardening in November after completing tool trial.
WaterUps® launches new wicking bed overflow pipe system
WaterUps® has launched its new wicking bed pipe system. The new pipes ensure perfect placement for optimal wicking action.
Wicking Bed Spring Planting Ideas and Tips
It’s time to think about what to do with your WaterUps® wicking bed now that spring has ‘sprung’. There are tips for preparing your wicking bed and some suggestions for what to plant in your bed.
Angus Stewart Video on growing vegetables in his WaterUps® wicking bed
Angus Stewart provides some tips about growing vegetables in a wicking bed.
Wicking beds helping our birds and bees
A recent collaboration with PlantingSeeds’ B & B Highway has resulted in a new application of our wicking beds in pollinator gardens. The B & B Highway – which stands for ‘Bed and Breakfasts for Bees, Birds and Biodiversity’ – is creating pollinator passageways across Sydney.
Angus Stewart Video on installing his WaterUps® wicking bed
Angus explains how he tackles some of the challenges of in-ground gardening by using a raised wicking bed. He provides useful information for home gardeners and community gardens. He shows how to install a WaterUps® corro bed kit.
Angus Stewart explains wicking and how he uses WaterUps®
Angus Stewart writes about how wicking beds create water-efficient gardens and using WaterUps®.
Optimal height of a wicking bed depends on what you plant
There is only really one rule when it comes to the height of wicking beds. That is, the science of capillary action determines that the vertical wicking distance is generally around 300mm. The actual height of your wicking bed can, however, vary provided you follow this simple rule.
Essential Tools for Wicking Beds and Gardening
Building wicking beds may require a couple of extra tools, such as a drill and a spirit level. However, even when picking up gardening for the first time, the cost, storage, and sheer number of tools and infrastructure you think you need can be overwhelming.
WaterUps in retaining walls
Rather than simply drain away all of the water accumulating behind the wall, we felt that it would make sense to retain some of the water in a wicking bed reservoir, so that it could be used for watering the plants along the edge of your retaining wall. A WaterUps® wicking system can be easily installed at the time of construction and for only a marginal increase in overall cost.
Become food self sufficient with a wicking bed
Growing food won’t protect us or our families from COVID-19, but having a continuous food source at home will take the pressure off food systems. It will give us the nutrient-dense, immune system boosting foods our bodies are craving, and more than anything, it will give us a meaningful and pleasurable way to spend time at home.
Wicking Beds perform well in the rain
Up until a couple of weeks ago our focus on wicking beds has been on how well they performed in times of drought. Rain has long been our absent friend. However, with the recent heavy rains, particularly along the east coast of Australia, I thought that it would be useful to observe how wicking beds have performed in the wet.
WaterUps® exports to the USA
We are pleased to...
Wicking beds for Schools and Early Learning Centres
Why are wicking beds ideal for school veggie gardens and Early Learning Centres and how they are different from traditional raised garden beds? One of the biggest questions for me when it comes to these gardens is ‘what happens during the term and holiday breaks’?
Wicking beds and Aquaponics
At WaterUps® we are often asked about aquaponics, both whether aquaponics is similar to wicking bed technology and whether some features of aquaponics can be incorporated into our wicking beds. Basically, they are very different ways of growing, which some people have combined in a single system.
Food security and wicking beds
Last month I went to a ‘Farm Chats’ evening at Pocket City Farms in Sydney to listen to a panel discussion on food security. The extent of food insecurity in the developed world is certainly concerning and urban agriculture and the use of wicking system technologies are likely to play a part in redressing this.
WaterUps® launches its new pre-moulded reservoir liner
Wicking beds use a...
Insulating your wicking bed from the summer heat
We are often asked “how do wicking beds handle extreme summer heat?” Can they withstand a succession of 40C plus days. Well, the short answer is yes, and they do much better than non-wicking beds. The most important thing is to maintain the layer of mulch.
Blueberries, Hydrology and Wicking Beds
This month we look at growing blueberries, some basic concepts in hydrology and the use of wicking systems for small scale blueberry growing. I had planned to write in a bit more detail about the capillary action and the process of transpiration in plants in this month’s blog. That was until I noticed how well the blueberries were going.
Wicking beds are ideal for school veggie gardens
Have you ever wondered who looks after the school veggie garden during school holiday periods. Well, in most cases you only have to take a look at the garden at the beginning of term to find out. The answer is often no one. This is why wicking beds work so well in school veggie gardens.
How low can you go? Water usage and wicking beds
Australia may be the ‘Lucky Country”, but it is also the driest continent on planet earth. Australia is experiencing intense climate change that will affect every inhabitant as our precious water resources are impacted by the ‘irregular and unreliable’ rainfalls. This is not just a problem for our farmers,
Dredge rivers, mine scoria or recycle plastic for your wicking bed?
Permaculture design teaches us to think about the problem and make it the solution. So, I decided to think a little more about the various ways in which people construct their wicking beds. River sand is more widely available than scoria, but it is probably less functional than scoria as
What is Perlite and why is it useful in wicking beds?
Avid gardeners would more than likely be aware of Perlite, and probably have used it in their soil. They may also have used Perlite for starting cuttings or growing seeds. Hydroponic growers would also be aware of Perlite as a growing medium. Perlite is now also starting to be used
Gardening therapy and raising your WaterUps® Wicking Bed
For those who are less mobile it is often difficult, and sometimes problematic, to get around the garden. In these circumstances, growing your own herbs and vegetables can seem a near impossible task. However, for many older people, and others suffering
5 reasons I LOVE my WaterUps® veggie wicking beds
Ever since reading ‘Under the Tuscan Sun’ by Frances Mayes I’ve dreamed of having an abundant herb garden just outside my kitchen door.
I’ve also always dreamed of being able to grow all my own vegetables.
But I thought I was years away from being able to afford the giant walled
Should I add fertilizer to my WaterUps® wicking bed?
Due to the way that they are constructed, wicking beds are what I would call a ‘closed system’. This means that the nutrients in the soil are not flushed out through the process of watering. In a non-wicking garden bed there is a gradual leaching out of nutrients,
Reducing water use and watering frequency with wicking beds
For my WaterUps® wicking bed, that I planted with tomatoes on 19th August, the comparison is amazing. After filling the wicking bed and surface watering of the seedlings with 4 litres on day 1, I gave the seedlings half a watering can on each of following 3 days.
Why a WaterUps® wicking bed is best for growing tomatoes
Tomatoes (“Lycopersicon Esculentum”) fruit best when they have a consistent soil moisture level. They are also thirsty plants. According to Ohio State University, they need around 38mm of water each week to fruit. Therefore, if you are using conventional above ground
Understanding your soil and the wicking process
The health of your soil is the source of abundant, nutrient rich food. We understand our bodies need plenty of fresh air, healthy food, and hydration with water, but do we know what soil requires? If we become a friend of the soil, by getting to know the texture, smell, colour, moisture level and the optimal depth we can grow our best fruit and vegetables.
West Pymble Community Garden – part of a global trend
In our consumer driven society, where we have seen a massive increase in high density living, we have become disconnected from the source of our food and community and school gardens are helping to re-establish this link. The Australian City Farms and Community Gardens Network,
Update on his WaterUps® wicking beds from Jon Kingston
It was good to get an update from our good friend Jon Kingston with some pics of his latest WaterUps® bed. Jon is one of Australia’s leading community garden designers and has designed and helps run the James Street Reserve Garden in Redfern and the Wayside Chapel community
“Retro fit” garden bed with WaterUps® wicking cells
Placing the old soil on a tarp next to the bed makes it much easier to reclaim than if we were to just dump it on the grass. You’ll need to decide whether you can re-use the soil, whether to mix in some new mix, or just replace the whole mix. As you can see in the first picture in the row