health
Houseplant hacks: does putting gravel at the bottom of pots improve drainage?
Generations of gardeners have added stones to their pots before topping up with compost, but does it really help?
TL;DR
- Adding gravel to the bottom of houseplant pots is a widely suggested practice to improve drainage and prevent root rot.
- The gravel layer is supposed to allow excess water to collect below the root zone, keeping roots from becoming waterlogged.
- Testing showed that pots with a gravel layer retained more water closer to the root level than pots without gravel.
- The perched-water-table effect causes water to stay in the soil above the gravel until saturation, actually worsening waterlogging.
- Effective drainage relies on pots with adequate holes and free-draining soil, not a layer of gravel.