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Index : Watering
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- 11. Watering Patio and Indoor Potted Plants - Top
- Now that cooler weather has arrived it’s important to make some adjustments to the watering of your patio and indoor potted plants to keep them healthy through the fall and winter seasons.
Cutting back on the frequency of irrigation is a must, particularly for potted plants grown on the patio. With cooler day and night-time temperatures, most container plants need watering only two or three times weekly, compared to the daily watering routine of summer.
Plant moisture meters are great for determining the frequency of watering on all potted plants. They have an easy-to-read gauge that registers soil moisture levels in three sequential stages; wet, moist and dry. Most potted plants should have soil moisture levels maintained in the moist range. But for cacti and succulents the soil should be allowed to dry out some between waterings.
Never water to the point that soils stay wet. Waterlogged soils cause roots to rot and plants to die! Some potting soils hold too much water. They’re just too dense with too much peat to allow for adequate drainage. These soils can be lightened with the addition of perlite. Pot new plants in a mixture of 4 parts ordinary potting soil and 1 part perlite. This will provide a well-drained growing media for most container plants. For cacti and succulents, use special cactus potting soil.
Regardless of the plant type, each time you water be sure to water thoroughly. Apply enough water to moisten all the soil. Water slowly and evenly over the soil. When you see water dripping from the drainage holes in the bottom of the pot, you’ve applied enough water.
One of the most common causes of failure of plants in pots is a build-up of salts is the soil. These salts are harmful to plants and come mostly from our tap water, but also from fertilizer. The most obvious signs of a harmful salt build-up is a white or brown-colored crusty salt layer on the soil surface or the rim and sides of clay pots. To prevent the build-up of harmful salts, water thoroughly and every few months apply twice the normal amount of water to wash out any excess salts from the soil.
On the patio, don’t set potted plants in saucers! Drainage water collecting in the saucers will concentrate salts that will be reabsorbed by the plants. Instead, set containers on “pot feet” that elevate plants above the ground. This will allow drainage water to drip out and away from the pots. It also provides an air space under the pot that prevents ants and other insects from finding their way up and into the pot through the drainage holes. Pot feet are available at most garden stores.
If saucers are to be set under plants indoors, fill the saucer with gravel to just below the rim. That way, the pot can sit on the gravel but above the drainage water that collects in the saucer. This will prevent the reabsorption of water and the resulting concentration of salts.
Finally, during the fall and winter months, avoid watering plants with cold water. Just as water in the hose can be too hot for watering in the summer, it can be too cold in the winter! Allow the cold water to run out of the hose before watering your patio plants. Indoors, water plants with room temperature or slightly warm water from the tap.
Written by John Begeman, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the University of Arizona, 520-626-5161.
- Updated: October 23, 2005
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