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drainage in large pots

B

bennoz

Hi All

im trying to improve my drainage in my pots, because as we all know chillis dont like wet feet ;), but in periods of wet weather how do you stop overwatering espically in large pots where the water seems to gather

I was thinking of putting a "drainage layer" in the bottom of the pots. something like larger stones or perlite, BUT after speaking with my dad he said this was a bad idea. He said water drains (or is sucked out) via capillary action and that any air gaps will stop the capillary action, therefore large matter in the bottom wouldnt actually do anything. Even though plants dont need soil to grow, having stones was a waste of space (they dont hold nutrients). Clay is great for cap action - thats why planting in ground is easier not to overwater. If i wanted to lower the water table in the pots just tip em on an angle for a day

Seems resonable to me - and tiping the pots was pretty effective.

Do any of you have tips on how to improve drainage in pots ?
 
I am certainly no expert but I believe your dad is right. Tipping the pot will help to a degree but will not remove all the excess water. While I have no experience with this, you may want to try and shove something up into one of the drainage holes. A piece of cloth or something that will pull the water out of the soil. Or cut the bottom of the pot off so the ground will do the work for you.
 
You may want to consider adding perlite to your mix, and maybe find a way to keep containers a bit off the ground during wet weather so they don't sit in water and they'll dry quicker
 
If you want your pots to drain well you need to use a potting mix that drains well. Try to get something that is light and porous and not heavy like clay (clay will actually retain water). I use a combo of Pro-Mix and compost mixed in about a 3:2 ratio and I mix in some composted bark fines to help keep the mixture light. Soil must be able to allow air in it for the water to be able to pass through it and so the roots can breath.

I usually cover the bottom of my containers with the black and white printed pages of a newspaper and then fill them with my potting mix. The newspaper keeps the mix from washing out and allows excess water to drain easily.

Here's a link to a container growing forum that may be some help: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/contain/


Alan
 
Mister_Al said:
I usually cover the bottom of my containers with the black and white printed pages of a newspaper and then fill them with my potting mix. The newspaper keeps the mix from washing out and allows excess water to drain easily.

Alan
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I do the exact same thing, but just cut out little 2 inch squares and place them over the drainage holes. If you moisten the bottom of the container first, the squares will stick in place while you add the soil. I've never had a problem with my pots getting too wet, but I keep them on asphalt and they don't sit in puddles.
 
Everyone has given you good solid info. Except maybe the cloth to wick away moisture ... not picking on ya Josh !! But heck it might work .... I know you can wick moisture into a pot ...... so it might. I just don't see how it , the cloth , would dry fast enough to be of must use in wet weather.

Good soil and getting the pots up so the extra water can easily run off seems the best. I use the black & white parts of the newspaper to line my pots and buckets too. But unlike bigt who seems to have more energy than me ...... I just fold up some to make several layers and shove it in. I feel it's still thin enough it doesn't take much away from the amount of potting soil you can put in.

Peace & good luck ,
P. Dreadie
 
Josh said:
Here is what I was talking about.
http://www.annarborbonsaisociety.org/newsletters/2004/2004-11/11_04_newsletter.htm
I don't know how effective it is since I have never tried it. Plus I suck at container gardening. Scroll down to "String Theory and More."
Click to expand...

I'm using that technique in my final pot-up and also in long term smaller containers. It helps with the drainage but can also be used to wick up water from a reservoir. I normally use strips cut out of nylon stockings. I'm using two 8 inch strips hanging out of my 7 gallon containers.
 
Silver_Surfer said:
If you want to improve drainage add pine bark fines and perlite.
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I tried this last year with the bine bark fines in one pot, I already had loads of perlite and vermiculite in all my potting soil. My tabasco that had pine bark seemed to need watering MUCH more often than the other plants(like every other day)......so i'm guessing it works
 
hotenuff4u said:
I tried this last year with the bine bark fines in one pot, I already had loads of perlite and vermiculite in all my potting soil. My tabasco that had pine bark seemed to need watering MUCH more often than the other plants(like every other day)......so i'm guessing it works
Click to expand...

Yep, it drains so well it's almost impossible to over water since the mix is so well aerated. I'm using a 3:1:1 + mix (fines, peat, perlite, + .5 compost).
 
Hi to all, I typically cover the drainage holes in my 7 gal. pots with paper coffee filters then adding 1 layer of landscaping lava rock followed by my soil mix containing 1/3 of compost, worm castings, and a water retaining potting soil plus added bone and blood meal. Pots seem to drain well.
 
POTAWIE said:
Too much perlite will just lead to the plants needing constant watering
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I am not taking the piss but would constant drip work? As long as nutes were used with every drip?
Say you use a return pump?
 
Ya, for sure you can. Perlite is often used straight in hydro setups for starting seedlings. I've never seen it used straight for full sized plant setups but I can't see why its not possible, just likely quite messy and the stuff is terrible for your lungs when dry.
 
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