Stuff You'll Need:

• A plant that grows quickly and easily, like Swedish Ivy.
  « See Picture 1 for an image of Swedish Ivy »
  You can take cuttings from an existing plant and set it in water until roots appear.
• 2-liter plastic soda bottle
• A narrow piece of cotton cloth or a wick at least 8-10 inches long
• Perlite, a growing media
• Lemon, baking soda
• pH kit or litmus paper
• Hydroponics solution or liquid fertilizer (plant food)

Setting Up:

1. Cut off the top 1/3 of the soda bottle. When it’s inverted and put upside down into the remainder of the bottle, this section will become the plant container.
   « See Picture 2 for what your bottle should look like »
2. Drill (or poke) a ¼ inch hole in the middle of the soda cap.
3. Thread the wick through the hole. Pull about 3-4 inches of wick into the plant container. The wick will carry the nutrient solution up to the plant.
4. Place the plant container, cap side down, into the soda bottle (which now becomes the nutrient reservoir).
5. Pack perlite around the wick in the plant container.
6. Before placing the plant in the container, remove the inverted section and add water and liquid fertilizer according to the directions on the plant food label. Fill the reservoir until it reaches the neck of the plant container.
7. Put the plant in the container and fill it with perilite.
   « See Picture 3 for what your bottle should look like »

Growing Tips:

1. Make sure the plant has sufficient light and oxygen.
2. Each week, check the pH of the nutrient solution. If the pH is above 7, add lemon; if the pH is 5 or lower, add ½ tsp of baking soda.