It’s getting more and more common to stick houseplants, vegetables and herbs into all sorts of different containers. Sometimes this works! But other times it ignores what the plant really needs. Container plants need more space than you’d think, and demand proper draining. Without those, your plant can drown, develop mold or never reach maturity. WIth this in mind, here are the planter pots to put your greenery in.
Plants absolutely need drainage. Without drainage holes near the bottom of their container, any excess water will simply sit, drowning the roots, developing mold and pests and who knows what else. Mason jar planters are cute, but unless you drill holes in them—and that isn’t easy—your plants will disagree. Always look for a pot with drainage in it.
One big secret about container gardening is that plants don’t actually care very much what material their container is made from. Wood is fine! Terra cotta is quite nice. But you know what? The plant doesn’t care, and will thrive just as well in plastic as they will in the most expensive hand-shaped clay pot. So feel free to pick aesthetically, but don’t feel constrained by it.
One key that many people miss with container gardening is using too small a pot. Tiny herb gardens are cute, but plants will, to an extent, grow to fit the size of their container. Stick your plant into too small a pot, and it’ll never grow to its full size. So even if your tiny plant looks silly in a 12- or 18-inch pot, it’ll only look that way for a bit—eventually, it will thrive!
