Do you love the idea of having beautiful indoor plants in your space, but hate the idea of another plant dying? Well, stay tuned because a way to have low maintenance plants that look good does exist!
The Norm
Many people purchase beautiful statement pots to style in their homes. They then plant directly into the decorative pot and hope for the best. But, here are the problems with this method:
- Decorative pots have drainage holes, and watering your plant can cause dirty water to run out of the pot onto your floor. Whether it's your indoor timber flooring, or your outdoor concrete, no one wants stains on their floor.
- To combat leakage, many then add a drainage tray under their pot. While functional, a cheap plastic drainage tray ruins the aesthetic of having a beautiful feature pot.
- Most decorative pots have only one drainage hole, which can become easily blocked by a piece of bark or mulch. This leads to root rot and the slow demise of your feature plant.
- If you ever decide to move house, or just your plant, a large pot of soil is difficult to move and can be easily damaged.
The Solution
The simple fix to have great looking feature pots and plants is to use what we already know. If decorative pots were great for plant growth, then plant nurseries would use them. But, they're not, because plants need drainage! You can look at any nursery and you will find all of the plants are in plastic pots with 6-8 good sized drainage holes. This allows the soil to freely drain and prevents rot. So, how do you incorporate this and have your plant look stylish in a space? Well here are the steps
- Choose a large nursery pot that fits into your decorative pot. The closer the fit, the better.
- Find the corresponding sized drainage tray. It doesn't need to be anything fancy, it just needs to fit inside your decorative pot.
- Place your drip tray inside your decorative pot and place your potted plant on top.
Using a plastic pot and drainage tray inside your decorative pot is the perfect solution for the following reasons:
- You can freely water your plant, without water running onto your floor.
- Your plant will be super happy in a well draining pot and will thrive in your home.
- You have the benefits of a drainage tray without the unsightly look. From the outside, it looks like you just have a decorative pot with a beautiful plant.
- If you ever want to move your plant, simply lift it out of the pot and move each piece individually. Less damage to the pot and plant, and so much easier!
The bonus pro tips...
If you're a heavy waterer and you're worried about water leakage out of the drainage tray and onto your floor then listen up! Before adding your drainage tray and plant to your pot, use some silicone to block the drainage hole of your decorative pot. Now, you essentially have two drainage trays preventing water running onto your floor.
Don't like the look of soil, particularly on large feature plants? No problem, just add more plants. Ground cover and cascading plants such as Dichondra silver falls, can be a great option. Simply add into the top of the soil when planting and allow to spread. It will cover the soil and also add an extra focal point to your plant.
