Capillary Mat System Set Up

Soil will absorb the water by osmosis and deliver it to the plant roots.

Capillary mat system set up.

Monitor your plants to gauge how often you have to fill the tray. Different ways to set up your capillary mats for watering african violet plants. The matting holds the moisture until it is taken up by the plants through their bottom roots through capillary action. Place the pots on the mat.

Capillary matting is an absorbant fabric upon which pots are placed. Set up a flat tray over a container of water and cover with capillary matting. Soil will continue to absorb water from the mat until it is evenly moist. A property of water it that it sticks to itself this property is called cohesion.

The way to set it up is to line your tray or tub with the capillary mat fabric and put the surface blumat on top and when adjusted correctly the blumat will automatically turn your water flow on and off based on the moisture level of the cap mat. First you need to place a polythene sheeting on the bench. Wash rinse the mat with soapy water this should reduce the surface tension and water will not be easily absorbed by the mat. The capillary matting a synthetic absorbent material soaks up water like a sponge.

It could be anywhere from several days to one week between waterings. Cut the capillary mat to size and prepare as described above. Then put a capillary mat on top of it. Use a 1020 black tray boot trays permanest trays or similar containers.

You can even use a variety of containers on top of one capillary mat. Add a piece of matting which will function as a wick drawing up water from the reservoir below. Step 2 watering the capillary matting. You can use capillary mats effectively with peat pots soil blocks or pots and trays with holes in the bottom.