Plant-A-Bottle (Set of 4 Indoor Plant Watering Devices) Vacation Plant Watering, New Improved Packaging* Water Plants and Recycle Bottles - Drip Irrigation Spikes, House Plant Watering, by HomEco

UPDATED REVIEW 2/12/16After several months of use, I have found that my initial conclusions were probably a little too negative. I have found over time that these are better suited to a very well mixed potting soil, preferably with some silt-loam type true topsoil material along with the typical organic material (versus a very loose peat type of potting medium). These are also a better fit for more drought hardy plants, than those with higher water demand. Another tip, the bottles also need to be lifted occasionally as they will sometimes form an almost vacuum seal like condition that prevents the spike from filling with water. In my last attempt, three of the four plants for which I am using the spikes are surviving adequately with less signs of drought stress, which is a significant improvement over my initial experience. I also appreciate the fact that the company took time to post additional suggestions for use after I posted an initial 2 star review.ORIGINAL REVIEWI love the idea of these, but so far they have not worked at all. I have these in some of my (normally outdoor) potted plants that I have brought into my basement for the winter. I thought this would be a great way to cut down on some of the mess from over watering. I was right about that part - these are definitely no-mess. Unfortunately, the four different plants I tried these on all nearly died. I could notice a little water drained from the bottle over the course of two weeks on two of the plants, but the water line on the other two bottles never moved. Three of the pots I used these in have a little heavier soil mix than typical potting mix, so that may have something to do with the issue, but the other pot was pretty much store bought potting soil and it faired only slightly better. Some of the Q & A answers above point to water demand of the plant, but all four plants were beginning to show signs of drought stress. I still have these in the pots after a month, but I have just went back to watering manually. I have also tried the glass bulb style watering globes, and ironically they water way too fast (in the same potting mix as the terra cotta water too slow). I was really hoping these would work, but so far - not good.

These are terracotta and come wrapped so they are well protected from the freight to your house!! They are actually bigger than I though, and if you have a typical wine bottle, the nozzle fits well into these! If you can find a wine bottle, you honestly can just fill these up with water and the water will slowly seep into the plant in 2-4 days so if you are going on a long weekend trip, you don't even need the wine bottle!! Its really great! They may just be a little big if you have really small pots!Also originally I was worried that the water would just come out of the top,but it doesn't! I would suggest you first put the terracotta spike into the soil of your pot to make the hole for the spike, then fill your glass/wine bottle in the sink, put the terracotta topper on the top of bottle, and then flip it over. At this flipping stage, you may spill a little bit of water, but not much. The water stays logged between the bottle and the spike (like magic!). Then gentle put the spike with the water bottle on top INTO the HOLE you had first made in the pot. And VIOLA! that's it.You'll be worried its not working, but as your pot needs the water, it will slowly pull the water from the terracotta spike into the soil! So the soil stays evenly hydrated!! No more too much water OR too LITTLE water! It just right!!!!You will also see in the coming days as the water in bottle slowly lowers. I haven't exactly measured but it it will take over 2 weeks for the water to fully dissipate out of the bottle through the terracotta spike.

8/12/2015 Update: Updated to 5 stars. Spikes are now protected in styrofoam which is great. I had ordered 2 boxes, total of 8 spikes. I am still using them in outdoor planters. I'm using them in combination with ollas (terracotta watering vessels). Therefore I have 2-3 ollas/spikes per planter.Original Review: These are the same as the Plant Nanny 6051 except they are in a box while the Plant Nanny came as shown in the picture. I also bought the Plant Nanny 6053, just to try them out. the description say indoors, but I wanted to try them outside. This review will be posted on all 3 items. There were no broken items in the delivery. I bought them to use outdoor in Southern California when I'm away on a short trip. They last about 2 days in the hot sun. I have used them for a month so far, and they are best used indoors or in the shade. They are so-so for outdoor plants in the sun. It is best if they are located close to the roots. I currently used them in support of my watering, so I don't have to water as often. I do plan on buying a few more until I find a better and simple method, since I plan on using 2 of them in some of my planters. I will but based on price between the Plant-A-Bottle vs Plant Nanny. The Plant Nanny 6053 has limited used, since you have to find bottles that screw into the plastic adapter or are small enough to fit the spike without the adapter. The Plant-A-Bottle/Plant Nanny can accommodate bottles other than wine/liquor bottle.