ollas

How do oyas work?

Comment fonctionnent les oyas?

Used for more than 2000 years, Ollas are microporous ceramic jars that are buried, and which are traditionally used in market gardening, vegetable gardens or ornamental gardens. They can also be used at home, by placing them in the pots of indoor plants. We then speak rather of oyas to be planted . The technical principle is simple: empower and optimize watering by gradually spreading a certain amount of water. You just need to bury your ollas in the ground and refill them with water every 4-6 days or so.

But how does the water flow? Clay is naturally a material that tends to retain, absorb and release water. It is partly this characteristic which gives it its elasticity and which allows ceramists to shape all sorts of objects. To give it a definitive appearance, it is necessary to cook it. This tightens the pores of the clay. All the subtlety of the ollas is that they are cooked at a very precise temperature, in order to make them solid while leaving the pores slightly open so that they can let the right amount of water pass through.

Once your olla is in place, your plants will naturally develop their roots in contact with the clay to function in symbiosis and come to naturally draw the water they need. To sum up, the ollas offer you more freedom and ease of maintenance, and promote the good growth of your plants, avoiding drowning the roots or letting the leaves dry out. In addition, they allow you to save considerable water, avoiding evaporation and infiltration associated with conventional watering.