Plant pots without drainage holes

Ragnar Lothbrok

I bought a couple of nice ceramic plant/flower pots in Aldi a few weeks ago. They're about the same size as a normal bucket. Got them home, filled them with compost and only then did it dawn on me that they had no drainage holes.

I was planning to leave them outside in a border, but that doesn't seem sensible as surely anything I plant in them would be drowned after a few weeks of rain?

Someone has suggested that if I put small gravel in the bottom of the pots, and then put a plastic plant pot on top of the gravel, it might help protect the bulbs.

Any ideas?

RiderOnTheStorm

Yup, they need holes. You have to let water out or the plant will drown, or rot, or mould etc. You can have indoor pots with no holes as you control the water going in, and not let it build up or also it can evapoate in indoor environment.

You can drill a couple of holes in ceramic using glass or tile bit. Mason bits can be used too, but make sure you are not on hammer setting, and go gently. It will make a hole a small bit rougher than glass/tile bit, but wont matter when on bottom of pot.

Gravel at bottom of pot only allows drainage if water can get out. Gravel stops soil from clogging the holes.

Ragnar Lothbrok

Thanks Rider. Not sure I'll trouble myself with getting holes drilled in the pots and they are a bit too large to use inside I think, so they will end up on the scrap heap

They were only €7 each, so it's not the end of the world!

New Home

You could fill them with water and aquatic plants and turn them into two tiny ponds. It'd be a shame to throw them out!

Ragnar Lothbrok

New Home wrote: »

You could fill them with water and aquatic plants and turn them into two tiny ponds. It'd be a shame to throw them out!

Oh I wouldn't throw them away, more likely to just store them in the shed in case anyone suggested a brilliant idea like aquatic plants

I'll definitely look into that, thanks New Home.

looksee

They are not plant pots, they are cache pots. They are for putting an indoor plant in, in its plastic pot, some are very big as you may use them on the floor for big plants. Don't use them outside as they will fill up with water regardless of pebbles and drown whatever is in them.

New Home

Ragnar, if they are cache pots and not flower pots, the glaze may not withstand having to deal with that amount of water for a long time, it may crack, letting water seep through and ultimately making your pots crumble. I'd suggest you lined the inside of the pot with something definitely waterproof.

Ragnar Lothbrok

Thanks for the replies. Hopefully I'll put them to some use eventually.

Or they could just become another useless addition to the shed!

Lumen

Drill holes in them?

looksee

If they are the smooth, curved pots that I have seen in Lidl, they are fine as cache pots but if you break the glaze they are quite soft and the glaze will flake away. If they are kept outside as plant-pots they will disintegrate when they get frosted.

Hocus Focus

Yes, they are definitely meant to be decorative cache pots, intended to hide the ugly plastic plant pots. The glaze is usually suitable for the purpose, as you will be controlling the quantity of water.
If you are concerned about deterioration of the glaze, put a lining of foil at the bottom and just make sure that when excess water drains through, it doesn't exceed the height of the foil. It would be a shame to waste them.

TCM

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Lumen wrote:

Drill holes in them?

Yes, clay / terracotta pots can be drilled - no problem.

looksee

Wut?!!

New Home

Multiquote gone awry, I'd say.

Cerco

Or a different type of pot ��