Plants of any kind need water to survive. But watering gets trickier if the plants are potted. Unlike plants growing in a home garden or a backyard, watering potted plants is challenging.
Key issues arise when you think about watering these plants. The water holding capacity of a pot is limited to its size. The potted soil is also lighter and less compact.
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The pots dry out quickly, especially in in hot and dry places. Taking all these to account, watering potted plants may seem like an easy task, but there is a correct way of doing it. If not done right, the plants may wither and die.
How often should I water plants in pots?
Once a day is recommendable when watering potted plants. If necessary, maybe twice daily can be good. This is especially in hot and windy seasons. It also applies more especially if the potted plants are outdoor, experiencing the effects of direct sunlight.
But indoor plants require low frequency of watering. They hardly experience evaporation and retain water more within the pot.
Some people develop a habit and routine of watering plants in the morning and evening. But it does not have to be a routine. It works best if you check moisture levels often.
When the surface is dry or cracked, it’s a sign reminding you to water the plants. The goal is to keep the soil moist, regardless of how many times you do it.
Besides how often you should water the plants, how deep is also a concern. In this case, the type of soil plays a huge part. Soil with rough texture hardly retains the water. This is different from the soil with smooth texture. For the later, watering may be once a day. But the earlier requires regular watering to keep the soil moist.
It is also necessary that every pot has drainage holes. When water drains from these holes at the bottom, it is time to stop. Drenching the pot means that the water has reached the roots that grow deep down the pot.
The regularity of watering should be determined by mere observation and feeling of the soil texture. But without a doubt, plants should be watered as often as the need arises.
Do you water potted plants from the top or bottom?
Plant lovers have this challenge of deciding how to water their potted plants. Bear in mind that it is not just about picking a watering can or a pipe. The question is, should it be from the top or bottom?
But the truth is, potted plants may be watered from the top or bottom depending on many factors. Let us begin with the type of plant. Did you know that there are plants that can’t stand water dripping on the leaves.
African violets, are an example of such plants. It means that the watering has to be from the bottom.
How about the type of soil texture used?
This is definitely the other factor that is used to determine the watering process. When the texture of the soil is thick, watering from the bottom may not help.
Water may not be drawn up the pot considering the holding capacity. It means that watering from the top is the best alternative in this case.
Besides this, the size of the pot also matters. If a pot is too big, holding it up to do the watering from the bottom is a challenge. The only possible alternative is doing it from the top.
It would be wrong to forget the type of water, and how it affects the method of watering. Some types of water contain certain chemicals that can harm the roots of a plant.
Top-bottom method may in this case be proper. This method ensures that the chemicals are flashed at the bottom of the pot. Excess salts are also silted at the bottom and eventually out. In this case, the drainage holes serve the purpose.
In a nutshell, both methods have pros and cons and have to be determined based on a variety of factors. It is upon the gardener to make the right decision having considered all the applicable factors. It is good to remember that watering the plants is okay, but doing it the right way is better.
Best time to water your plants in a pot
There is no right or wrong time to water plants in a pot. In fact, some people decide when to do it depending on their work schedule. It is determined by their availability and not the plant’s need for water.
In most cases, people rush to water their plants in the evening after a day’s routine. There are some gardeners who have a notion that plants need water more in the morning than evening. However, whether in the morning or evening, the purpose is served and plants are happy.
Ideally, watering plants in the morning is likened. The argument is that the plants need sufficient moisture during the day. Sunlight and wind are more active during this time.
The water evaporation rate is also higher. Therefore, early morning is mostly preferred among plant lovers. Experts also call on this because it helps with drying the foliage. When done in the evening, there is no enough time to allow wet foliage to dry.
Can you overwater potted plants?
Mostly, the concern is about under-watering plants. The concern is that when under watered, plants dry and die. But there is also the threat of over-watering plants.
Most gardeners are yet to realize this fact. But overwatering plants is drowning them. When too much, the plants sit on standing water. It is a huge threat to killing the roots. The roots can easily rot and eventually die.
There are also cases where gardeners suffer poor drainage. This is a case where the pots are not holed at the bottom. All the water is contained within and keeps soaring up.
If such water is retained and a gardener routinely waters the plant, overwatering happens. This is a huge threat because it kills the roots or exposes them to disease fungi.
But the fact is that overwatering plants can only be intentional. A gardener can easily use simple observation to avoid it. It would be wrong to continue with the watering routine when the water soars high above the soil.
Routinely checking the moisture of the soil when watering can equally help with controlling overwatering of plants.
Do potted plants need water every day?
Whether potted or not, plants need water every day to survive. But many factors come to play as to whether they should be watered daily.
It is only wise to first check whether your plants need water. While at it, touch the surface and observe the leaves. In fact. there should be no set schedule for watering plants.
Dark colored soil is mostly wet. It is also heavier in texture. If you identify a pot as well watered, doing it again is not necessary.
For people with many plants in different points, there is a point of caution for you. Just because you have identified one plant as needing water today, does not mean that all of them should be watered.
How quickly a pot dries is a major determinant of whether you need to do it daily. You should therefore treat each plant differently when deciding how often to water them.
I also come back to the issue of the type of plant. There are plants that can do without water for longer periods. These plants like being a bit dry in between the watering routines.
Snake plant is a key example of such plants. These are drought resistant plants that can do without water for longer, compared to other plants. Plants like lily of the valley and sweet woodruff must be watered often.
These are mainly plants in the group of flowery plants. They need a lot of water daily to avoid withering of flowers and drying up of leaves.
Watering plants in a pot or container
Overall, watering potted plants is a task that should take into account many factors. Just be sure to make the right decisions for your plants. It is only right to seek further information when in doubt of the how and when, the watering should be done.