water bed in greenhouse

[vegok]

this year i fixed 2" x 2" battens round the bench in my greenhouse, lined it with butyl and filled it with vermiculite. i poured water into the bed about 1/2" - 1" and started all my potted on seedlings on this bed.

Great for ease of watering - every day during the hot early summer i just replenished the water supply and the pots drew it up. ~I top fed my greenhouse veg plants with 10ml/10ltrs feed/water every 2-3 days and all seemed to be doing well. The soil in my pots remained moist at all times, possibly got a bit wet now and again if i overfilled but all looked well

recently noticed a collection of lice type creatures under the pots - is this a problem - can it be solved - is there a problem using t his system. Would it be better to replace the vermiculite with a 50-50 vermiculite-compost base.

Anyone tried the waterbed idea or got reservations about it   

[vegok]

[Robert_Brenchley]

As long as it doesn't rot the staging, and the plants all need around the same amount of water, that souds a great idea. You can get all sorts of things in damp patches, and they don't necessarily do any harm. Are they woodlice, by any chance?

[saddad]

I tend to use capillary matting... some plants loose their lower roots if standing in water...  :-X

[tonybloke]

unless the water is constantly moving, it will be very low in oxygen, this is ideal if you are growimg pond or marsh plants, they are adapted for this type of environment. most other plants prefer 'moisture retentive, free draining' growing medium. In the garden, if we had plants with their feet in permanent water, we would install drainage!! ;)

[davyw1]

The basics is right in bottom watering, i use much the same but only putting enough water to give the plants a drink and moisten the compost,  not have them standing in water all the time.
As i pointed out to some one, how would you feel if you had to stand in cold water all night.

[Robert_Brenchley]

I don't see any point in putting compost outside the pots. If it was me, I'd probably use fine gravel - how does the cost of vermiculite compare? As long as it's a thin layer, and you're not burying the pots in it, or flooding it, I don't think it'll do the plants any harm. The water will surely be no worse aerated than soil water.