While December brings joy to many of our lives, the winter months aren’t so good for our gardens.
We may be full of joy and cheer as Christmas looms, but the wet weather can cause havoc for our plants. If you’re worried about your garden becoming waterlogged during this time, there’s a simple thing you can do.
In fact, a gardening guru has urged people to do one thing to prevent their plants from becoming overwhelmed with water. Ish, known as gardening.with.ish on TikTok, said potted plants can often sufffer with the problem during the colder months.
Due to the cold and wet weather that comes with winter, water doesn’t evaporate as quickly in our gardens. This causes it to “sit” in the soil, and waterlog the plants.
It’s something nobody wants, so he told people how to stop the issue from worsening. All it takes is a simple trick to solve the problem.
Ish said: “What I do is I get three little wooden blocks, and I pop my pot straight on top. As a result, that keeps the drainage port at the bottom nice and free, which keeps my soil free-draining.
“The same applies for my larger one too. I’ve got three slightly larger chunks underneath there, which again just creates a gap between the ground and the soil, which means it has an adequate amount of drainage.
“Now, you can buy feet for the pot but, if you’re looking for something quick and easy, use a wooden block.”
The video has been viewed dozens of times since it was shared, and people seem to like the idea. It’s a cheap and effective way to keep plants in tact during the winter.
If you didn’t know, plants can actually drown from being waterlogged. This can happen by them being exposed to too much rain or by being overwatered.
When soil becomes waterlogged, water essentially fills the spaces between soil particles, which stops oxygen from reaching the roots. This causes the roots to die and, in turn, the plant will lose its vigor.
Meanwhile, if you overwater your plants, a similar process will take place. If soil is constantly wet, it won’t have enough air pockets, which means the roots won’t be able to breathe.
This will cause the roots to become stressed, which isn’t good news for the plants. Regular drainage is therefore very important.
