If one is using a soil that allows roots to rot easily, I think that would be the primary issue one would want to address for any kind of growing, companions or not, an easy thing to change. If one isn't having issues with rotting roots, there's no logical reason for combining plants, in and of itself, to create one.
The rotting of roots isn't about how much water a person puts into soil, but about the amount of oxygen present while it is moist and whether or not the excess moisture escapes the root zone, combined with how long it takes to dry out (assuming temp is within acceptable range.) Roots need oxygen and moisture at the same time to function. Some plants would love to stay moist all of the time, as long as there is also oxygen, but the roots of succulent plants & cacti can rot if moisture is
always present. So, doing whatever is humanly possible so that the soil for C/S plants in particular dries as quickly as possible seems like a very good idea to me.
This is where myths like, "likes to be pot/rootbound" come from. No plant likes to be rootbound. What they like is for their roots to NOT rot. Having very little soil, even of a type that can easily rot roots, makes it more difficult/unlikely for even the most dedicated plant-overwaterers to rot the roots of their plants. This is not ideal, just a way of coping with inappropriate "ingredients" and/or textures in a pot. There is no one thing folks can put in to make soil better, but removing tiny particles of any type will definitely help.
I gave up trying to walk the overwatering tightrope years ago by stopping the use of potting soils that allow roots to rot, so don't generally worry about doing this to any plants anymore, except in cases of being outside during daily rains (for plants that don't want to stay moist, need to dry out.)
I also wonder about combining those of various moisture needs, and have been doing a lot of it the past year to see what happens. It is because some roots can rot so easily that I've made an effort to combine succulents in particular. Those that use moisture much more quickly would help wick moisture away from the others that can't absorb it as quickly, or just don't use it as quickly, whichever the case may be. Unless they passed from memory upon death, (which would be noticed by its' presence on my plant list but not growing in my pots, its' carcass) no succulents have died over the past 2 years from being combined with others that like more moisture. I believe the opposite, that they are able to survive living with my tendency to think plants are always thirsty, and in the climate of steamy, dewy, sometimes very rainy south AL, because they have companions to help dry things out as quickly as possible.
The traditional flower pot shape, much more deep than wide, can be a death trap for plants that have insignificant root systems compared to the size of the mass above the soil. Without a companion plant that can grow roots all the way to the bottom, the size of pot needed to keep some succulents upright is often much too big for the roots to dry in a timely manner simply by virtue of the large volume, regardless of texture. Logically, if one keeps adding more plants to a pot, regardless of the soil type/texture, each will help it dry that much more quickly.
Combining Coleus, for example, with such plants as Begonias, Dracaenas, and various epiphytic jungle cacti has produced no ill results. No wilting Coleus, no rotting of the other plants. I don't have various conditions or soil mixes to offer, beyond light exposure and watering frequency. Regardless of pot size, soil mix, or companions, all plants get the same care - the amount of light that makes them look best, water when dry. The only thing separating them when not potted together is simply being in separate pots.
As far as I know, although I have many plants that behave wildly differently depending on season, I don't have any plants that have temporary dormancies that require a ritual alteration in their care, a level of difficulty that doesn't interest me. But if I did (or do,) they would have the choice of surviving the same experience as all of the other plants or dying because the conditions I have to offer aren't conducive to their survival. I don't see how being combined or alone would have any effect on that, a separation of nothing more than a few inches in the same conditions. But obviously, if one has plants that need to be regarded with seasonal rituals, it would be important to not combine those that wouldn't also appreciate being subjected to the ritual. Excellent point.
Lin, I have Callisia fragrans alone in several pots. My comment about it dangling was wondering what it will do if *only* dangling from the side of a pot, from a hole cut in the side of a hanging pot. I can't envision any other way to use it in combo with other plants if I hope a grouping will last for a year. It just grows too fast and strongly for a companion used at the same soil level to compete or augment, that I can imagine anyway. If anyone has any combo planters that have Callisia fragrans, I'd love to see them!
Yes it does dangle well - so well I'd never considered using it in any pot but a hanging one until recently. A couple weeks ago, I changed a hanging pot of it over to a trellis, just to see how it will age... and with a vision of it covered with flowers from all different heights in a few months. The novelty of guiding the runners up the trellis may get old before it goes back outside too.
Edited to add: Lin, I think you could sell that other plant you mentioned. Folks love FL weeds! Most potted house plants fit in that category for most of the rest of us.
So...! Cinta, I'd LOVE to have seen what your Mom was doing with this plant, and her other plants. It sounds like she liked to manipulate and mess with them like I do - often, and often in unconventional ways, often on impulse.
TY for the compliment. I hardly feel qualified to write an article, I'm just tripping merrily down the experimental primrose path... Not trying to lead or follow, just doin' my wild, weird thang... ;)
It's definitely not an issue with only 'pros,' So what are some combo cons? Here are some I recognize, or have experienced.
- It's now hard to take a pic of most of my plants as individuals. If I drop a pot, forget one's out in the cold, or an animal molests one, pests show up - any kind of single-pot tragedy, it's a much greater ordeal/loss.
- Many individuals lose their symmetry, adapting/adjusting to available spaces like pieces of a puzzle.
- It's hard to figure out how to pick some of them up, where my hands might fit.
- It is more difficult to inspect every surface of many plants.
- At any given time, I can't see a lot of my plants unless I turn/move the pot. Cool for the change of scene when rotated, but could be bothersome. Because of this, it's also harder to make sure everything has enough light while inside. After only a couple weeks, I've rotated plants more already than I would over an entire winter a few years ago.
- When you stick cuttings in the (enlarged) drain holes of hanging baskets, they can't be put on the ground at all. This creates more logistical difficulties than I'd anticipated.
- If the wind blows over a pot, there's more damage and breakage.
None of what has been discussed is inherently good or bad, and same points can be both, depending on the eye of the beholder, so to speak. Just interesting differences and options that, if known and well discussed, folks can manipulate to best suit their sense of aesthetics and amusement, level of patience, available space and conditions, assortment of plants, whatever factors may be in play. Putting a plant in a pot at all is a grand manipulation, IMO, with anything in addition being just tweaking of how that's done. And as is said often, if we all did things the same way, there would be no fun discussions or surprising and fun pics! No opportunities to seek inspiration. That would be so sad!
Sometimes I cringe when I see combinations of tropical succulents with desert type succulents...a recipe for disaster..one or the other will for sure die..different watering and lighting needs. And most people do not care..they just look how cute the plants go together, and wonder later why one just rotted out.
Doing the necessary research and using plants that require the same needs makes for long lasting plantings!
Don't get me started on that one. I keep telling my husband we need to get out there and try to dig it all out ... the blooms are fragrant and so pretty but it is extremely invasive and has already taken over and killed Pentas and Lantana and some other things in one bed.
I love containers too and I totally agree that the right container can really set off a plant and make it look great! That double metal planter is currently hanging on my screened porch with nothing in it ... I really need to find just the right plants for it.
