Hello kargren,
I just did a quick search for the Ephedra plant. If it's this this plant"
Ephedra (genus) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
It looks like it is a shrub that grows in dry climates, I don't think it will do well with wet feet. The water level in the setup you described will be always be the same. By not having a separate reservoir you will be limited in the amount of water you can put in the tote. By having the water level as low as possible you will be running the risk of running the
pump dry daily. And the
growing medium being less than a foot deep, the roots system will grow down into the water (getting their feet wet).
I'm not sure how big this bush gets, or how wide your tote is, but I would use a separate container for the reservoir for sure, and try to keep most of the standing water out of the bottom because I don't think that plant would like wet feet. But you probably would know more about that than me. Basically you are describing a water culture/
drip system combination. Typically water culture systems are better for plants that don't mind getting their feet wet.