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| Photo Credit: Diane Mays |
| The soil line is where the crown of the plant meets the media. |
What a silly topic – potting plants – just throw a plant in a pot and heave some dirt over it, right? Well, sort of, but let’s “dig” a little deeper. (Pardon the pun.)
There are many things to consider when potting plants into containers. Let’s concentrate on two basic principles: learning the proper planting depth and providing enough space in the pot to water correctly. Then we’ll finish with the techniques required to pot plants perfectly. When container-planting, the top of the media should match up exactly with the crown of the plant. This area (where crown-meets-media) is called the “soil line.” Proper planting depth will ensure that very little stem is below the soil line and that the roots are covered sufficiently with media so that they’re not exposed to the air. Too deep, and the covered stem is susceptible to disease. Not deep enough, and the exposed roots may dry out and be killed. | Add Photo to Journal |  | | Photo Credit: Diane Mays | | This 6-inch pot has about a ½ inch of reservoir space for proper watering. |
Next, provide enough space between the top of the media and the top of the pot. This space is called the “reservoir.” The purpose of the reservoir is to hold enough water so that the plant gets thoroughly saturated in one application. It also prevents the media from being blasted out of the pot when watering. The reservoir depth is measured after the plant has been potted and watered-in and the media has settled.
The required reservoir depth depends on the diameter of the pot: The larger the diameter, the deeper the reservoir should be. As a guide, a ¼-inch reservoir depth is needed for a 4-inch pot, and a 1½-inch reservoir depth is needed for a 14-inch pot.
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