Almost every home and every family has indoor plants that decorate the room and make it cozy. But only with proper care and good maintenance conditions, crops will delight with their blooming appearance and bright colors of leaves and flowers. Of course, it is very important to water and feed the plants on time, but the flower container in which they are grown and the correctly selected soil mixture are also very important.
Sometimes it is not easy to find the appropriate amount of irrigation water and the frequency of watering for each indoor flower. Lack and excess of moisture negatively affects the decorativeness of the plant, its external data. And the problem sometimes lies in a low-quality flower pot or in a free container made from plastic bottles. They are only suitable for growing seedlings, not for home crops. Flower containers can be made of any material (for example, plastic, wood, metal, ceramic), but they must contain the required amount of substrate and provide good water and air permeability.
When planting plants, a drainage layer must be laid on the bottom of the container, which protects the crops from excess moisture and promotes full air exchange. Expanded clay, perlite, small river pebbles or pieces of polystyrene absorb all excess irrigation water and prevent waterlogging of the soil in the pot with the plant. True, over time, the growing root part tightly entangles the drainage material, which is a big disadvantage when transplanting an indoor flower. Freeing the roots from expanded clay or pebbles, you can accidentally damage their fragile structure.
If drainage saves pets from excess water, then it is much more difficult to do this from drought during a long absence of the owners. Without regular soil moisture, only cacti can survive. To solve this problem, modern solutions have been found.
Special flower pots with a drainage system make it easy to care for any species and varieties of plants. The whole structure looks very simple and consists of two plastic containers or flower containers inserted into each other. A pot of smaller volume and depth has several small holes in the bottom and small protrusions that prevent it from completely sinking. The pot remains suspended, as it were. A drainage layer is placed between the bottom of one and the second pot. All excess irrigation water flows into the intermediate space between the flower containers and prevents moisture from stagnating and the root system from rotting. In the absence of watering for several days, the flower will begin to use these surpluses.
A more expensive and improved option for caring for indoor plants is flower containers with automatic watering.
Benefits of pots with a drainage system
Such containers are especially useful for inexperienced flower growers who are just learning to care for home crops, or for indoor plant lovers who are accustomed to travel often and leave their pets alone at home for a long time.The "smart" pot will prevent plants from drying out or rotting from overflowing water, and also provides some other benefits:
Possibility for irregular watering. With autowatering and a special control system with an indicator, you don't have to worry about moistening the soil in a flower pot at all. Without being in the apartment for several days or weeks, you can be sure that everything will be in order with indoor plants.
Eliminates the need for frequent transplants. You don't have to think about replanting to renew poor soil with such a system. It is enough to add mineral fertilizers to the drainage layer or irrigation water, and the plant roots themselves will begin to feed.
Makes the transplant procedure much easier. If a transplant is nevertheless necessary, then this system will help to easily remove the plant along with the earthen clod, without damaging the horse part.
Provide an opportunity for bottom irrigation. The holes in the bottom of the pot with a drainage system not only allow for good ventilation and drain off excess irrigation water, but also allows for bottom watering. This method of irrigation helps to maintain the lightness and looseness of the soil.
Disadvantages of pots with a drainage system
The big minus is the high cost. If pots with a drainage system are still not much more expensive, then an autowatering system with an indicator will cost a pretty penny.
There is no way to control the amount of excess water. From an ordinary pan, it would simply overflow, and in such a pot the water level may turn out to be above the drainage layer and then the roots may rot. An exception may be a transparent flower container.
Regular rinsing of the "confined space" between the pots is required, as mold or bad odor from stagnant water and decay may appear due to the impossibility of evaporation.
Does the root water box need drainage?