Jonna, I'm so sorry about Cuba. I know how hard it is.

Karen

Well, this is kind of the way things work in Mexico but even after all this time I'm sometimes taken off guard. They showed up yesterday with all the earthboxes. It's been over a year at least. They did say that when the fiberglass guy came back from living in Mexico City he would make them but I had no idea they would all just show up. I'm not really sure I want this many anymore. ah well. Plus, he kind of missed the point of them and I will have to do some modifications on them to get them to work. I'm going to look for an earthbox forum here for some advice. So now, I have all these boxes lined up on the roof and it kind of spoils the ambience so I need to move some plants so I can fit them where they need to go. Plus, I can't really put them there and leave them alone at this time of year because the rains will fill them up a couple inches and that just makes a mosquito heaven. grumble grumble I'll be happy once I get it all figured out. My goal is to plant tomatoes and I don't know what else by Sept so they can grow over the winter, it is just too hot and too much sun in the summer.

You are supposed to just cover the top of the boxes with plastic wrap around the plant trunk to keep water from soaking into the soil? That is really the whole concept of an earth box.

https://earthbox.com/
https://earthbox.com/earthbox-...

How many did he make for you? That is so funny that you got them a year later. I guess nothing arrives on time in Mexico? LOL!

Yes, time is relative and cultural. I saw an article the other day from a French guy living in the US giving advice to other French. He told them that punctuality is really, really important to Americans and that they need to change the whole way they look at it. The usual 15 minute either way grace period doesn't exist there. I thought the whole thing was funny, he also told them to learn how to ask for doggie bags because the serving sizes were so large. Here the grace period is much longer, thus my year late earth boxes. I could have called and pushed about them but I really forgot and wasn't that concerned.

From what I have read there needs to be an air space between the water at the bottom and the bottom of the soil. He put the drain holes at the same level as the support for the soil so I need to somehow create that air space as well as make 2 areas that are soil all the way down into the water for the water to wick up through. Then I will need to cover them in plastic to keep the fertilizer from dissolving too soon. I'll have to take them apart and take some pictures of how it is set up now. It's just so hot right now to be on that roof in the daytime.

Well, if you can make those earth boxes work out, you will have a nice opportunity to grow all kinds of plants, especially edibles!

I use the self-watering buckets. Home-made from 5 gallon buckets. I have 3 different tomato plants and a dwarf eggplant (each growing in their own bucket). All of them are still going even in this heat! I am totally amazed. I do have to fill the water reservoir every day because the roots of each plant really soak up the water in these high temps. But they are still producing tomatoes and eggplants. I also have sweet peppers growing in much smaller nursery pots and I need to add each of those into their own 5 gallon buckets too. They would probably love a much bigger container for their roots and would produce more fruit. Right now they are struggling. Self-watering is the way to go!

I have had zero luck growing edibles in the ground here. The 5 gallon buckets are the only way I've been successful.

Please do share photos of how the guts of your new earthboxes look. Very interesting, indeed!

"Please do share photos of how the guts of your new earthboxes look. Very interesting, indeed!"

Jonna, I loved the French perspective.

I found the article about advice for the French visiting the US. It is pretty funny. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tra...

OK, I took pictures of the boxes. I'm still contemplating what I want to do, I should just admit that it is hot and the idea of going up there for hours and working on them is not attractive.

Here's one as it would look with the platform inside.


and with one side of the platform lifted up


This shows the fill tube.


a whole bunch of them lined up on their ends so water won't collect inside. I really don't need this many, I'll have to find something else to do with them or somewhere else to put a few.


Here are a couple as they would look if in use. The concrete benches on the roof were designed to take 3 each of these boxes. I don't know what I thought I was going to grow in all of them, there are only so many tomatoes I need.

I like those boxes! Pretty cool actually! I understand why you feel you don't need so many. I would use all of them in my yard and be quite happy about it! They are much more attractive looking than the ugly buckets I use. You could grow sweet peppers, hot peppers, lettuce, dwarf eggplant, radishes, carrots, bush beans, or lots of flowers!

If I lived closer, I'd come purchase a few off of you! Can you add two of them, one on each side of your walkway or front door step and fill with flowers to greet visitors?

I agree with everything in Becky's post!

Those boxes are really nice looking, Jonna -- I'm sure you'll figure something out once the heat lets up and you can think about it.

Jonna, it was funny!

Great pics. I like your doggie. :P

Welcome to NGA @jonathina

Yes, Welcome @jonathina Our names are similar, at least my real name and your forum name. Let us know where you are and what you are interested in. It's a friendly place here.

I need to update my roof garden pics but I'm kind of embarrassed because I STILL have not gotten the boxes to work right and thus the garden is full of fiberglass almost earth boxes standing on their sides. Not attractive.

Busy happens, Jonna.

lovemyhouse said:Busy happens, Jonna.

I'm pretty sure we can all relate to that!

The pictures look good!

extranjera said:Yes, funny how a simple thought about putting some tile on the roof and making it level can grow into all this.

Here are a couple pics from this afternoon. The concrete beams that were delivered yesterday are now in place. I wondered why they were making holes in the wall. Also, lots of bags of gravel and sand. The concrete and foam are in the bedroom to keep it out of the rain.





All of those bags of gravel, sand and concrete as well as the rebar and beams were hauled up by hand. Mostly on top of their head. These Mayan guys are small but they are incredibly strong, watching them zip up the stairs with a huge bag of rocks on their head is an amazing sight.

I agree with Hetty. That is a lot of weight going on to the roof, glad the architect backs up his work. Eager to see in-progress photographs,Jonna