Whether you like to pot your plants directly into a decorative pot or use a nursery pot inside, it’s important for your plant to be able to drain properly. If you use the nursery pot method and use your decorative pot as a cache pot, it is not necessary for the cache pot to have a drainage hole. If you like to plant directly into the decorative pot though, you’re going to want to make sure you have the proper drainage holes so that your plant can get oxygen and allow excess water out. If you do not have drainage holes, your plant will sit in excess water, which can lead to root rot and/or fungal diseases.
Another reason drainage holes are important is for leaching the soil. It’s a good idea to leach your soil every so often to get rid of mineral buildup. You can do this by running a bunch of water through your soil and letting it drain out until the pot is no longer dripping. I prefer to do this with the nursery pots or a pot with multiple drainage holes so that all of the water can drain out properly. This process will carry the unabsorbed minerals out of your soil so your plant can continue to stay healthy.
When your plant is getting ready to need a bigger pot, you may see roots growing out of the drainage holes. Yet another reason to love drainage holes because they help you know when to repot your plants. If you see roots growing out of the holes in the bottom of your pot, it is probably a great time to move up to a slightly bigger pot.
So what can you do with your beautiful decorative pots if they don’t have drainage holes and you still want to use them? With a ceramic drill bit, you can easily drill holes into the bottom of any of your plant pots. If you’ve been struggling with any of your houseplants and you have had them in pots with no drainage, I highly recommend you switch them over or drill a hole into your pot. Your plants will thank you!
Drainage
