My balcony containers look fine in the morning and dramatically unhappy by late afternoon on hot days. The smaller pots can dry enough that the mix pulls away from the sides.
I have started grouping pots together and moving the thirstiest ones where they get morning sun but some afternoon shade. That has helped more than watering twice a day, which I was starting to dislike both for the plants and for me.
The containers are a mix of sizes, and the difference is obvious: the larger ones stay much more stable. Next season I am considering fewer, bigger pots rather than trying to keep a collection of small ones evenly watered.
I am also wondering about the potting mix. Mine drains very freely, which is great during wet weeks and maybe not ideal during the hottest part of summer. I do not want to swing all the way to a heavy mix that stays soggy.
For people gardening in hot conditions, was increasing pot size the biggest improvement, or did changing the mix/water-holding capacity matter just as much?
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For me the mix change was the bigger win, because my pots already had enough volume. A slightly more water-holding blend bought me a lot of...
For me the mix change was the bigger win, because my pots already had enough volume. A slightly more water-holding blend bought me a lot of time between waterings.
If your containers are truly small, though, I can see why size would be the first fix.
That’s fair. I think the answer changes a lot depending on whether the pot is barely big enough or already reasonably sized.
My worst summer failures were in undersized pots with a very airy mix. Those two things together were brutal.
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I’d pick bigger pots first, then adjust the mix a little. Too much water-holding capacity can buy you a day, but a tiny pot still runs out o...
I’d pick bigger pots first, then adjust the mix a little. Too much water-holding capacity can buy you a day, but a tiny pot still runs out of room fast.
Grouping them together was smart, by the way. That helped my balcony way more than I expected.
I’m not fully convinced size is always the first move. If the mix is pure drain and the plant is drying to the edge every afternoon, changing the mix can be the easier fix than repotting everything.
Probably depends on whether you’re dealing with one bad plant or the whole container setup.
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Bigger pots were the biggest improvement for me. The mix mattered too, but mostly because the small containers dried so fast they made every...
Bigger pots were the biggest improvement for me. The mix mattered too, but mostly because the small containers dried so fast they made every other choice look worse.
Once I moved a few plants into larger tubs, I stopped chasing them with the watering can all day.
I’d go even harder on the pot size. In hot weather, a bigger root zone is like giving the plant a little buffer so it doesn’t panic by 3 p.m.
I still like a mix that holds some moisture, but not one that stays swampy after a single watering.