Ive never personally used the wick method but it is tried and true... , it should be find if you buried them but i suggest you leave the bucket at least 2 inches out of the ground... the way they work is there are 2 buckets, one that fits on top of the other and the top one has a cotton wick that absorbs the water and brings it up to the plant... keep in mind you will have to constantly refill the water around once every week... keep in mind most hydro is done indoors and if it rains its possible your plant could drown if the bucket ends up overfilling.