Watering Your Container Garden Plants – When & How to Best Water

Since container planters are not given the same amount of room to spread their roots, they usually need to be watered more often than other areas of the gardens. But some plants, watered too often, can experience problems such as root rot. So how much is too much watering? How does a gardener know when to water their container plantings?

Signs to Know When to Water Your Containers

While some plants require more water than others, there are some basic guidelines for watering container plantings. A general rule of thumb for the average container plants, is to water the containers when the soil is dry a ½ inch to an inch deep.

Drought tolerant or succulent container plants can go longer between waterings. With these tough plants you should water when the soil is dry to a depth of 1 ½ to 2 inches.

How Container Choices and Weather Conditions Effect the Need for Watering

What gardeners need to understand is that not only does the weather or climate conditions effect how often a container needs to be watered, but container choice does as well. Sunny garden spots obviously require more frequent watering. But windy days will also increase the amount of waterings for container planters.

Small pots will also need to be watered more often so keep pot size in mind when adjusting your watering schedule. Gardeners should also know that the type of container you have will make a difference in the amount of watering needed. Terra cotta and other porous containers will lose water faster through evaporation. Plastic or resin or other non-porous containers will hold water better and so will need fewer waterings.

How to Water Container Gardens Easily

Many gardeners prefer to use a watering can or hose watering wand because it forces them to inspect the container garden personally. This personal attention makes it more likely that little maintenance chores like pruning, weeding or pest control will be attended to right away.

For convenience or hard-to-reach containers a self-watering or reservoir of some type is very handy. These containers store a larger amount of water and slowly disperse it into the soil as the soil dries out. They still have to be filled periodically, but will give gardeners a few days leeway and prevent moisture fluctuations in the soil.

Another automatic or easy-to-implement system is an irrigation system. Drip systems can be set up on automatic timers taking away a great deal of the work. This is especially useful when container gardens are hard to reach, or extensive in size.

Container gardens are a great way to increase the ability of gardeners to grow unique cultivars or use small-space gardening. Watering can make them tricky, but doesn’t have to be a stumbling block for gardeners. Use common sense, some watering guidelines, and if needed, watering systems to make watering easier for your container garden and enjoy beautiful, healthy plants.