So with the new system of having to keep your crops watered, I wanted a way to have that done automatically. As there isn't a way to control the weather (that I know of) I decided to build my own sprinkler system. Basically any normal ocean planet will do, and you'll want some sort of vertical door, like the mining hatch or as I did (because thinner and less annoying than hatches) the ancient light platforms. Starting off with the top platform/hatch 2 blocks below the ocean level, then one space between the top hatch and bottom hatch, and then enough space to grow what ever crop, typically 6 minimum for banana trees. (I had extra due to all the drains I was trying at first to stem the flow. On the ground, I have a drain, 2 open blocks, drain, 2 open blocks, etc to allow enough room for 2-4 seeds per hatch while the drains prevent flooding and your crops washing away. On the right hand side, you'll see a timer (I chose the 5 second timer cause I couldn't get the logic gates to work and allow me something longer). This allows the crops to be watered at a decent rate without overly doing them, though it may slow down the growth a bit. Beneath that is a Not-switch, which links to the lower line of hatches to have only top or bottom open at once, thus allowing only the 5 blocks of water to fall at a time and soak the seeds. As well as there is a switch, to turn it off if need be, otherwise just leave it running and keeping your crops wet and happy. Excuse the bad arrangement of images, but it should help give a basic idea of how it works, as well as showing you can continue as deep into the ocean as you want. This was just my first version, and I am open to upgrades to make it run smoother and/or have the timer increased to closer to 30 seconds or a minute, how ever long it takes the dirt to dry out. Otherwise, I do hope this helps people who want to have an automated sprinkler system! All that it needs now is a means of harvesting and replanting everything.
I like the Ancient Light Platforms, really goes well with the water. I think you are wasting a lot of crop space with that many drains. Edit: Never mind though if is only for Bananas, as I know 2 trees is all you can fit under each door. There are some good builds in the comments here if you want to see other styles: https://www.reddit.com/r/starbound/comments/3j9zyg/auto_watering_plants (and you can see some other timer usages)
Hmm thanks for the link. My biggest issue with the timers was that I might of been using the wrong ones. (I admit I got most of my items via /admin mode as I was really just trying to test things out and get something that worked rather than build a massive non-working thing.) As for the drains, probably. It took a while for me to get the right amount of water to drop in the first place so I had drains-galore until getting to what I had there.
