The low down on DRIP TRAYS for your plants
We all know that drip trays for containers are there to stop water running out of the pots and messing up the surface beneath them. However, there are few facts that one should know about some of the draw backs of drip trays.
If you are watering your plants correctly, the water collected( after watering) in the trays will be taken up by the plants during the course of the day.
However, too much watering or heavy rain will saturate the soil in the container and fill up the drip trays - this amount of water is too much for the plant to cope with and if left in this state, can cause the plant roots to rot - and eventually can kill the plants.
Too much water will also leach the soil - draining all the nutrients out.
I live in a winter rainfall area and it can rain for six or seven days continuously, so I have to watch my drip trays and drain them each day - if I don't, my plants will drown.
However, do not throw away the water from the drip trays - empty it into a bucket to use to water the plants when they have dried out - this way , you are replacing the nutrients that were leached out of the soil and probably rescue a few earth worms in the process. Some containers have legs at the bottom which elevate the container and prevent the pot from sitting in a drip tray full of water.
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Thanks for reading!
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