Container Gardening: 3 Things I Put in Every Container Before Planting (Most

Before I put a single plant in a container, I add three things that make a huge difference. One keeps the roots cooler, one helps it retain moisture, and one makes the pot lighter and reduces the need for me to put so much soil in a heavy pot. So yes, this is bubble wrap, and I came up with the idea when a couple of my beautiful boxwood absolutely fried from reflected heat off of my driveway and the garage doors. I know it sounds strange, but let me show you how I use it and how it could help you too. If your containers are in full direct sun, or they're black or dark color, or they're cordon steel, something that gets smoking hot, here's the thing you want to remember. Most plants can take a lot of heat if the roots remain cool, and that is what the bubble wrap does for you. It provides an air pocket. So the pot might heat up, but the roots and the soil will stay cool, and you don't need to go all the way around. You just want it the side that faces the most direct sun. So let me move the camera closer and show you the mechanics of it. So let's just say this pot is located in a spot where it's taking direct sun. Let's say that this is the side that is facing west or south, but you notice that this side is visibly hotter. So you just take your bubble wrap, place it inside the pot, and this is before I do anything else, and you don't need to go all the way around. You just want to do it on the side that is taking or absorbing most of the heat. And once I put soil in here, I'm going to trim this down so that I can't see it, and it won't be poking through any kind of mulch. So that's all you need to do to keep the roots cool. It makes a huge difference. Number two, every garden has at least one or two pots that are hard to get to. So this little hack is one of my favorites, and it has become a game changer. So let me show you what I do. I'm talking about the water storing crystals. Tiny crystals that expand many, many, many times their weight once they're wet, and then they slowly release it in the soil so that the root ball can stay evenly moist. They're not a substitute for watering, and they're not a substitute for fertilizing. You only need it around the root ball. So this tiny amount, this is two teaspoons. I soaked it overnight, and it expands to this much. So here's the thing I want you to ignore. I want you to ignore the directions. I don't think the person who wrote this description is actually a gardener. So the instructions say to mix the water storing crystals dry into the soil, and then once you plant it, to water thoroughly, wait an hour, and water thoroughly again to fully charge them. The problem with that is that when they expand, they will push the soil out of the pot. So I always, I use the recommended amount, but I soak them overnight, and I mix these pre-charged or fully saturated crystals with my dry soil, and that way I don't have any surprises the next day. Ask me how I know. And here's number three, and it kind of surprises me that it took me so long to start doing this. It's using an empty pot inverted in the larger container in order to keep the pot lighter and save soil, but here's why it works. Most of the things that I grow in containers are shallow rooted. Camellias, azaleas, boxwood, rhododendrons, azaleas, all of those things have fibrous root systems. They don't have a tap root the way a tree would. So most of those fibrous root systems are 12 to 18 inches. So for me to put it in a pot like this, it only needs the top half of the pot. That's 12 inches right there. 18 inches would be right there at the most. So by placing an empty pot upside down in the bottom before the soil, it just gives me that much less soil that I have to use, and it keeps it just that much lighter. So when you don't want to use this trick would be if you're going to plant a tree. My Japanese maple in the big pot, trees have a big tap root. You're going to want every inch of soil so that that tree can stay in this pot for a very long time. And if you don't happen to have empty nursery pots laying around, there have been times where I've used styrofoam cubes in order to recycle them. But you could be creative. Anything that won't break down and won't add extra weight. So that's it in a nutshell. The three things I consider putting in every pot before I put the plant in. Bubble wrap keeps the roots cool. Water saving crystal keeps the roots moist. And an inverted pot makes the pot lighter and reduces the amount of soil. So let me know in the comments which of these three you're going to try in your own garden. And as always, thank you so much for subscribing. I am trying to build my channel. I appreciate your being here very much. I'll see you next time.