How to water when you have no drainage holes | House Plant Journal
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- Опубликовано: 1 авг 2024
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The LTH Meter: the first meter that measures light, temperature, and humidity
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In this video, I'll show you how I determined the amount of water that is held in a volume of soil or sphagnum moss.
To summarize: most planting media hold no more than a third the volume of water compared to the volume of planting medium. But even if you are sure to pour in only this amount, the moisture must be used up by the plant working - the plant will only work in the right light.
Step 1: find the dry weight of soil
Step 2: fully moisten the soil - watering it in a container WITH drainage holes so that any excess water can drain away.
Step 3: find the weight of the saturated soil
Step 4: subtract the dry weight from the saturated weight; now you have the weight of water being held in the saturated soil.
Step 5: pour out this weight of water into an identically shaped container (obviously, this container can't have holes)
Step 6: observe the volume of water compared to the volume of soil
Here are some water volumes that I've found for different types of soils:
Pure peat moss: 1/2
Regular potting soil (peat moss + perlite): just less than 1/2 down to 1/3
Sphagnum moss: 1/3
Cactus soil (peat moss + coarse sand + perlite): around 1/4
Orchid medium (bark chips): around 1/4 because there are lots of air spaces
Why volume? It's easier to visually compare volumes (water to soil ratio) than to compare weights. In your everyday life, you pour out liquids into differently shaped containers so you're more familiar with how water would fill them up.
Sphagnum moss (the good kind):
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My book 'The New Plant Parent':
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All my house plant do not have drainage hole. My watering strategy is watering only 1/10 of planter size water for dryness love plant, and water 2/5 for wetness love plant. They are all doing great.
JJ L. Thank you for the data, however it is a mystery for me which ones love water and which ones don't?? I have killed too may plants already (they are expensive these days).
@@gloriaiarango hey there, there are some Apps out there that will give you some info regarding plants care. I for instance use "PictureThis" . Hope it helps
Very beneficial video. You took a lot of the "feel" that I have when watering plants and found a good process to measure water needed precisely. Thank you.
YOU SIR! ARE A GENIUS!! Thanks so much for this. I was confident using no drainage pots until i made both of those mistakes, too much water, not enough light. Im off to do some measuring! TY!
It's good to see you back. I am one of those who drills holes. I don't want to think too much when I'm gardening. Most of the time my thoughts are shared between gardening and other responsibilities.
Thanks for the info. When I retire, or when the grandkids move out, I'll spend more time with my plants.
Thank you so much for making this! Every other video just talks about adding a gravel layer at the bottom.
Thank you and all plant enthusiasts. With current events and not being able to buy plants ,these videos truly take the edge off.
My apologies , I didn’t realize you’re more than a plant enthusiasts but an Author as well . I look forward to reading your book . The New Plant Parent .
Thank you!! That was a great tip! For years I've been growing plants in pots with no drainage holes, and about to do my next round of planting, so it was great to discover your method. I find that watering plants with hand-held pump pressure water sprayers with semi-mist steadily moving over the surface saturates the soil evenly throughout the planter, but it was always a guessing game with moisture meter in terms of how much to add. I'm going to combine your method and measure out exact water amount in the bottle. THANK YOU!!
Very good. It is almost a “ scientific “ way to measure the amount of water to add. And light is essential . 👏👏👏
I like the way you think. :)
Finally, I got the video...I was looking for a long time. Thanks brother for the information.
Just found your channel after The Crazy Plant Guy's video. Also, I saw your book cover when Summer Rain Oakes did a plant book review video. I've added your book to my Amazon wish list.
The scientific method in practice, we love to see it
Awww Daryl, thank you SO much for this helpful video!! Drilling into ceramics made my day lmao thanks again!!
Nice couple of simple but very important tips - thanks!
cheers
JB
I loved this video! Straight to the point and valuable information!
I never used drainage holes last year and my plants came out great wit alot of fruit too
Very informative! Thank you!
This is excellent. Thank you!
Brilliant!!!
Brilliant! Ty for sharing!
Interesting way to look at it!
Very informative! Thank you for sharing. 🙂
New sub here coming from Crazy Plant Guy. Loving your channel. Informative.
Well now I'm relieved I can put down my drill and just try your method ☺️
It really makes sense! Thanks!
Fantastic!
Thanks for the video! 😁
that is some useful science
Thanks for sharing! 🌱🌿🌵🌴🌳💕
Very nice, thank you
Very helpful TFS
Thank you very much newbie here
You had me at weighing the soil!
Thank the international community for developing units that make sense (ml, g etc).
I LOVE THIS
Well..you earned a subscriber out of me.
Hello. Great video like how you came up w the calc for this. One question, how often would you water the plant once you know how much to water? Thanks
Finally, you're back on RUclips.. Thanks for the knowledge, always on point! :D #hellofromIndonesia
great
I’ll try to do this by sight since I got them prepotted
Hello sir. Glade I saw your channel. Here’s the thing, I’m watching a plant person , plant in pon all she cares for and no drain holes, she stated she hates them😏 Any who she uses plastic cup I’ve seen when she re pots, her big boys phili, Anthui. Are in larger vases with pon, per lite , bark, yet no drain holes. Help me with this, she recently had our break in her Hoyas mealy bugs, my thoughts was cause it’s packed with pon, no air, I’ve asked her to explain yet she no respond 🤨 Thank you for taking the time her sir 🥰
Very helpful, thanks.
Too bad I didn't see it before I killed the sanseveria I bought in the jar without the drain.
She was very beautiful in that special container that came with her. I watered it roughly for 2 years and than I became too cockeye and I killed her 😪. It was my fault I became too confident....
In the end I never again bought plant with cointainer with no drainage no matter how beautiful they look together. After I watch this video I don't know, we shall see if I have the courage.... 👋
I still don't understand how to use the measurement about the soil that absorb the water, can you give me some example please?
Hi. What brand faucet do you have? I like the shower and gentle water flow. I need to replace mine
what about salts? They will just continually build up if you can ever flush them out. Every time you water and the water evaporates it leaves behind salts and pending your water source carbonates. How do you handle that?
What about an experiment (starting from not completly watering in a plant in a fabric pot) measuring how much water your plant uses, between just right for them & too dry, before watering a similar amount. This could be fine tuned over time?
With fabric pots it's not at all convenient to water them until they leak
S M À R T. Genious🎁
Whith all my respect.... Sir ... Does this tecknic apply has a general use ? and for ALL Plants in ALL conditions ?
and would you have to measure wright amounts of water all the time for different kind of plants ? depending of pot size ?
and is there a special mixture or kind of soil used whith this tecknic ?
I use Akadama + pumice+ perlite + vermiculite and of course holes in my Pots and all is great no root problems and growth is exceptional all lushish and green and encourages flower growth...of course each speecies in the wright LIGHT🌟🌟🌟
Thank you 🐝
I water enough to where as the water flows down it covers the pot but it wont pool at the bottom
How often exactly do you rewater them?
would this be the same for succulents
Good video, thanks. Do you have an idea what the water to soil weight ratio might be? I have a pot with 7 lbs. of dry (very little moisture) soil and was thinking maybe 30% water ....2.1 lbs. ? Sound right? Or maybe this would vary for different types of soil............
This video discusses *volume* ratio, which is easier to estimate by eye. The ratio by *weight* would be much higher - as in, a fully saturated sample of soil would be SEVERAL TIMES HEAVIER than that same sample completely dry.
@@HousePlantJournal Yes, makes sense.
r tea leaves good soil? dried ones
what do you do about soil buildup from tap water? unless you have drainage holes, you can’t “flush” the soil once in a while to remove salt that accumulates over time.
Water your plants with spring water instead
❤
Any advice on how to fix hydrophobic soil in pots without drainage holes? Ive had succulents die from a lack of water despite being watered. I hadn't realized the issue until I was cleaning it out and found water at the bottom and bone dry soil that hadn't absorbed a drop. Ive tried soaking it to the rim to let the soil absorb then tipping it to let excess water drain out but it seems the bottom part never dries out,even when the top is like dust.
I'd mix it up with new soil or compost.
may i know which is that plant hanging on both sides of the mirror?
Looks like a Scindapsus pictus to me
i just water less often
Why did your NOT wiegh out the water for your plant in the last part of the video? I just saw you water from the faucet directly into your plant. Am I missing something?
A very good question: the weighing of the water was to establish what VOLUME of water will saturate a given volume of planting medium. It's easier to estimate a volume ratio than it is to try and figure out a weight of water that should go into a particular weight of soil (which doesn't include the weight of the pot). In any case, at the very end, I point out that adequate light is what makes it all work - I never get hung up on being super precise with watering.
am i the only one hearing that high note?
Water
near the surface readily evaporates and does so at a rate that is only limited by
the energy available. This so-called energy limited evaporation lasts as long as a
certain amount of water that evaporates, 0.47 inches for sandy soils and 0.4
inches for silt loam soils. The time it takes to reach the energy limited
evaporation depends on the energy available from the environment. Bare soil
with no crop canopy on a sunny hot day with wind receives much more energy
than a mulched soil under a crop canopy on a cloudy cool day with no wind.
So I don't need drainage lol.
1ml of water always weighs 1g, so you don’t have to weigh the water, you can just measure it or use a container/watering can that has ml on it :)
Weighing it out using an identically shaped container will allow you to get an estimate of the volume ratio for the given planting medium. It's easier to estimate a volume of water you pour out instead of having to weigh out the water for every different sized pot you have.
I heard that you have the Hong Kong accent, were you born in Hong Kong?
U save my ass bro
👏👌👍
When you have a very porous substrate water will actually drain out of the holes long before the soil is fully saturated. So the assumption: water drains out of holes = soil is saturated is not true in many cases.
I never used the fact that water drained out to be the check on whether the medium was saturated. I just ensured the medium was fully saturated.
@@HousePlantJournal okay, sorry then I probably misunderstood something you said
in less quantity
Watching it while making hole in pot😆😆
I hardly look people in the eyes when I am speaking.
Now I know how this looks like.
It was hard to listen as there was a horrible shrill buzz in the bg of the video the entire time.
It's interesting information, but simplify your life and have drainage holes, especially if you don't want to spend too much time taking care of your plants.
3 years yet it looks kinda......sad?
i think no hole is better....you will save on water....you just need to know what is the right amount of water and how often to do it
You lost me when you mentioned putting in only half the amount.
If you already know exactly how much water is needed to fully saturate the medium in a particular container, couldn't you always measure this same amount of water and just pour it in?
I think it was because in the cup experiment it looks approximately half of the soil/moss volume?
There is a very high pitched tone through the entire video which is rather annoying. Just letting you know
I hear it too. I'm trying to ignore it but it's a stressful sound haha.
Nerdiest approach
ok now u know how much water the soil can hold but u dont know how fast it drys up so this is pointless !?
You don't need to know how fast it dries up...just check on it (as you should be for taking care of plants).
@@HousePlantJournal ok so how do I know how much % the soil is filled with water im confused usually am kinda smart but I fail to see your point.... if u just check on them an water when dry why do you need to know how much water the soil can hold? or was all this work just to have a guidline so u dont pour buckets in it ?
@@MrCGangsta if you DON'T have drainage holes, then knowing this guides you on how much water to pour in. When you DO have drainage holes, then you can simply keep pouring and the extra water will drain away.
@@HousePlantJournal ok so its no exact science u sure made it seem that was:) thx for replying keep posting videos
may i know which is that plant hanging on both sides of the mirror?
scindapsis pictus