These can be used for either annuals or perennials. Several of the plants I'll be growing have a two-year lifespan so they won't be harvested until 2012...assuming the world hasn't ended.

I'm not sure how one would set up a solar still that would catch evaporating water but not overheat the plants. If you have some ideas I'd love to hear them.

As for capturing the overflow water, that's not much of an issue. The overflow hole is right in front where I can see it so I stop adding water at the first sight of water trickling out of the hole. Sidenote: I placed the overflow holes on the ugliest side of the buckets thinking they would be turned towards the raised bed behind the buckets, leaving the nice, pristine white side of the buckets in view. Then I realized I couldn't tell when the buckets were full of water, so now I'm looking at the ugly side.

-Blast