Building My First Setup

[rachel]

I have been doing a lot of research on what kind of system to build- I don't want anything too complicated, I just want to get my feet wet.

I have planned it out in my head, but I don't know if it will work. It seems to be a combination of a passive system and an ebb-and-flow.

I want to have one large container for the plants (an old recycling bin)- the bin will rest at medium-level height. A step above (high enough that it is completely above the top of the bin) would be a plastic drum of nutrient with a hose attached. The hose will have many holes pokes throughout (but the end will be plugged so the water is only coming out of those holes) and it will be threaded underneath the top layer of growing medium, like a sprinkler. This top drum is very large- maybe 50 gallons? So I assume it would take all day for all the water to eventually pass through the plant's root system.

Then, on a level below the plant container, there will be another drum collecting the nutrient water from a hose coming from the base of the plant container.

Will this work? Is this slightly better than a still setup? I thought that if I measured correctly, by the time I came home from work the water would have passed through and I can pour it back into the top drum.

I was also planning on trying this with spinach and lettuce. Is that a good idea?

Also, this is an outdoor setup.. since I am just beginning. And I can't use a pump because I don't have any outlets outside.

Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks. rachel