Moisture Balance

Getting just the right moisture level to keep a plant happy and thriving is one of the biggest challenges to growing in containers. Although you could grow almost anything in any pot with enough care and attention, there's no reason to make things harder for yourself than absolutely necessary.

Successful container gardening is a delicate balance of choosing the right plant and container to work with your lifestyle and environment. Four key factors to keep in mind:

• Your personality and schedule
• Plant's needs
• Container properties
• Environmental conditions

All four factors are important, and will determine the success or failure of your garden. A busy, forgetful person who lives in arid Arizona trying to grow a moisture loving plant in a porous pot will have much different results than if that same person was growing the same plant in humid Virginia or in a glazed pot. Similarly, a devoted gardener living in Seattle growing cactus will have a different set of problems than a forgetful gardener.

A good rule of thumb with containers is that anything made of porous material (such as clay) will dry out more quickly than something made of non-porous material (such as plastic.) If you love the look of clay pots, but are having problems with them drying out too quickly, you can glaze the outside with a sealant that will eliminate the porosity. Or try using clay pots as cache pots for other non-porous containers.

Finding out what moisture levels plants prefer takes a little research, but is well worth the time investment. If you purchase your plants from a high quality garden center, there should be information on the tag that comes with the plant that tells you what level of moisture the plant prefers. Ask the people working at the nursery about the plant, and what care they recommend. There are also thousands of books with information about plants and many plant encyclopedias on the Web that can help you out. (See links for a few suggestions.)

Odds are pretty good that it's easier to change your plant and container selection that it is for you to move, or get a new personality. But if you are absolutely dying to grow a certain plant - you'll have to decide how much you are willing to change to keep the plant happy. Bottom line - know thyself, and plan accordingly.

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