Patios and decks are frequently constructed from either wood or concrete. Most people believe they can handle practically any situation. They may, however, be vulnerable to harm from plant drainage. As a result, you must place plant saucers beneath all of your outdoor plants. Potted plants without saucers may need costly deck or patio repairs in a few different ways.
Plant saucers can help shield the wood deck’s planks from excess moisture that could otherwise cause rot, water damage, and warping. Even though the wood is protected, the sealants do eventually wear off, especially if they are constantly exposed to water. Therefore, it’s crucial to have a device there to collect any additional water your plants may need. Additionally, when you water your plants, you’re not only giving them a drink; you’re also assisting in the soil’s removal of excess salts and irons. Although beneficial for your plants, this may leave stains on your outdoor sanctuary. For this reason, we also advise using hanging basket drip pans for outdoor hanging plants. In order to prevent deck stains from plants, they also function to collect surplus water, salt, and iron.
However, plant saucers are still necessary for protection even if your patio is made of concrete. Concrete is robust and resilient to many different forces. Salts and irons flushed from soils during irrigation, however, can still cause stains. Additionally, letting water linger on your concrete patio for an extended period of time can encourage the formation of mold and mildew, which no one likes to deal with. Instead, using our plant saucers, which have ample drainage and circulation, not only helps maintain the health of your plants, but also helps safeguard patios and decks.
What alternatives are there to plant saucers?
The majority of planters are sold without saucers, and some even lack holes. Learn how to water plants properly and when to use saucers and cachepots.
Not a day goes by at Potted without someone asking whether they need a saucer, especially when they have houseplants. The majority of planters don’t come with saucers, and some of them don’t even have holes, so it’s an excellent question. Here is all there is to know about using saucers with indoor plants:
Facts about plants and planters:
- Nearly all plants require drainage (except water plants)
- Using rocks as drainage occurs occasionally and under extremely fortunate circumstances
- Every pot and saucer made of ceramic has the potential to “sweat” if they are left with any standing water inside (meaning: the water could damage the surface below)
So how do you handle these problems? Do a happy dance if you manage to find a pot and saucer that match, like the one pictured above. This plant would thrive on a sunny windowsill, and as long as you don’t water it there, nothing would be harmed beneath it (more on that later). Sadly, there is little likelihood of discovering a saucer that matches. What should you do if the pot has an uneven shape?
I make strange saucers work by acting as though I intended it to be that way. I adorn them with gorgeous stones, pieces of glass, or marbles and toast to their successful coupling. It’s simple and, as you can see from the example I made above, it truly looks fantastic. I just had to come up with a saucer solution for this stunning planter from Austin-based Foxwares Ceramics because it came with a hole, and I believe it works fantastically.
What transpires, though, if there isn’t a hole? French meaning “to hide a pot,” a planter without a hole is referred to as a cachepot. All 24 of my houseplants are set up in this manner (yes, 24). The cachepot’s charm is that you don’t have to bother about looking for a saucer or run the danger of destroying the pot’s elegance by using an unsightly saucer. I simply set all of my houseplants within the cachepot so that the planter effectively serves as the saucer, keeping them in their original nursery containers that have excellent drainage.
Because it’s so simple for water to collect and soak through, I don’t water my plants in their cachepots or on top of their ceramic saucers. Instead, I take my plants to the sink for a nice soak when it’s time to water, and then I return them to their containers once they have finished draining, which takes each about a minute. My plants grow well, and it’s quite simple.
The goods (shown above) listed below can also be very beneficial:
- I place cork pads under the saucer of every plant that I intend to water in its pot after potting it in soil. The pad prevents the planter from scratching the area I’ve placed it on, and the saucer’s potential sweat from harming wood surfaces is also prevented by the pad’s plastic backing. Additionally, you may use cork pads as saucers under small planters with succulents or other low-water-demanding plants; I do the same thing with my cachepots. Although it might seem excessive, every pot will eventually leak—hopefully not over your antique oak table.
- Plastic saucers: I put one of them into a planter with a hole to transform it into a cachepot. (These could be used as genuine saucers, but I don’t think they look particularly attractive, and I haven’t discovered any number of pebbles that could make them appear otherwise.)
- Rubber pot risers: These raise the pot off the ground, allowing for good airflow. These are only used on larger plants that I can’t water at the sink. I use the risers to raise the plant inside the cachepot so there is less possibility of it resting in water (make sure you use a cork pad under the planter, as you will have standing water from time to time). Pot risers are obviously best used outside on a deck. I frequently observe individuals purchasing saucers for their deck plants in the mistaken belief that they are preserving the wood. When they move the planter and discover everything to have rotten underneath, they are shocked. The saucer is identical to the planter in that it traps water underneath, which will eventually destroy the wood if given no time to dry out.
What is placed beneath outdoor plants?
You can repurpose polystyrene foam packing peanuts as filler for large pots as you learn how to use drainage in pots. Using packing peanuts can improve drainage and save heavy containers from needing to be moved.
Before adding packing peanuts to a container, be sure you know what they are comprised of. When you water your plants, packing peanuts composed of organic ingredients, like corn, will decompose swiftly.
What purpose does a plant saucer serve?
Drainage will be crucial in container selection for overall plant health.
be essential to achievement. Buying pots with drainage holes may seem simple, but there are other considerations when growing in containers.
What is placed beneath plant pots?
Look for a container that will conceal the grow container you are using for your plant. The grow pot should be placed inside the decorative pot on top of a layer of non-porous material, such as gravel, marbles, or pebbles, that is about an inch or two thick.
Do plant pots need to be elevated above the ground?
For container gardens, pot feet built from a variety of inventive materials offer a lot of advantages.
Through Mary-Kate Mackey
The unsightly stains that appear beneath your pots after a season or two of sitting on a porch, deck, or patio are some of the most neglected effects of watering containers.
It’s annoying to have to scrub this off or to keep seeing rings of dark container water buildup. The usage of pot feet can stop the entire process.
Yes, I am aware that pot feet are rarely included in lush magazine spreads on container gardening, but including elevation in some way—and there are many—eliminates the need to completely clear up the area.
In addition to making your job easier, raising containers with pot feet can increase the lifespan of wooden steps, decks, and porches. The health of the plant’s roots is also influenced by the airflow under a container. Lifting your pots a few inches is crucial even on stone, tile, or concrete when you’re not concerned about rot.
There is also a copper-coated pot foot from Britain that is said to prevent slugs and snails from entering pots; I haven’t tried it, but it would be rather useful here in the soggy, rainy Northwest.
Pot feet made of bricks or stones are essential if you have containers in your garden beds. A beautiful nine-foot-tall Norwegian weeping spruce that was growing in a sizable pot resting on dirt was lost to me. It continued to wilt and die back. I continued to water it despite not realizing that the soil and the pot bottom had sealed together. I very well drowned my tree.
As a result, prop up your containers with anything. And right now, if you have plants lying on the ground, go outside and lift one edge of each container to see if they are free.
Okay, what supplies are available for the pot feet? Over the years, I’ve accumulated quite a collection. Look for plastic rings or wedges of different sizes that can elevate the container by approximately a half-inch if you prefer the floating appearance of no plant feet showing (great for current styles). That’s adequate to get the job done. The risers also endure a long time because the plastic is protected from the sun. Potrisers is one such brand.
I like to show off my pot feet. I’ve amassed sets of three-foot-tall pots made of terra cotta, concrete, and high-fire glazed ceramic throughout the years. Some are wacky, while others are simple. Make sure the feet on your containers are as frost-proof as the pot itself if they are to be displayed permanently.
I use concrete bricks that make a triangle on the ground so the pot can rest on them because they are inexpensive. I’ve occasionally discovered river cobbles of a comparable size that work just as well. Just watch that they don’t bury themselves in the ground. I attempt to match the container and feet because the feet come in all sizes.
I often use two sets, or six pot feet, to provide support under containers that contain water and water plants. You might wish to do the same in locations with strong winds. The addition of pot feet can make containers slightly more prone to being knocked over in a strong gale, therefore it’s preferable to use another set if you believe you might need it, even if three feet will typically be sufficient.
Have you discovered any inventive materials that may be used as pot feet? Tell me what has worked well for you. Raise those containers, along with the decks, porches, steps, patios, and garden beds that they are held in, for happier plants in the interim.
Mary-Kate Mackey is the co-author of “Sunset’s Secret Gardens153 Design Tips from the Pros,” a contributor to the “Sunset Western Garden Book,” and the author of several essays for Sunset, Fine Gardening, and other magazines. She also writes a monthly blog for the Hartley Greenhouse website. She is an instructor at the School of Journalism & Communication at the University of Oregon. For Diggin’ It, she discusses water in the garden.
Editor’s note: Visit our blog archive to read more articles by Mary-Kate. The main gardening page of the Monitor has articles on a range of gardening-related subjects. See our RSS feed as well. Visit Gardening With the Monitor on Flickr if you like. Participate in the conversations to find solutions to your gardening-related queries. You can contribute your garden images and participate in our upcoming contest if you join the group (it’s free).
How do I keep potted plants off of my floor?
How to Prevent House Plants from Ruining Your Hardwood Floors
- Keep pots from sliding or dragging on the flooring.
- Put your green companions in coasters, saucers, or plant trays.
- Watch out for scale insects.
- Use mats or rugs.
- Drink water carefully.
What should be placed beneath outdoor flower pots?
I know, I know—I swore I wouldn’t bombard you with long lists. The paralysis of analysis, etc.
However, I want to give you enough suggestions for things other than plants or earth to put in planters so you may make do with what you already have. I categorized the fillers into 7 groups to keep it simple. So let’s begin.
Light materials you can use to fill the bottom of your large planter include:
- repurposed plastics
- soda/water bottles
- jugs of milk or water (lids on, if possible)
- Solo cups (turned upside down)
- plastic food containers for takeout
- empty bottles of detergent
- pots for plants and 6-packs (turned upside down)
- used plastic containers (turned upside down)
- recycled foam components
- packing peanuts (avoid the soluble variety, please!)
- Foam blocks and other packing supplies (Yes, you may fill the bottom of a planter with Styrofoam.)
- Foam cartons for takeout
- Craft spheres (pricey)
- Several blocks away from a craft shop’s floral department (pricey)
- other inventive additions from “around the house
- soda and aluminum cans (crushed or uncrushed, your choice)
- outdated pool noodles
- Plastic Easter eggs (clearly empty and cleaned first!)
- Cheap plastic colander with drainage holes can be found at The Dollar Store.
- organic substances
- Phragmites moss
- Coco husk fiber
- smother leaves
- Pine twigs (good for soil conditioner, too)
- Small sticks and tree branches
- cardboard and newspaper recycled