watering soil from the bottom?

[elephantman]

pros and cons?

elephantman Reviewed by elephantman on 05-18-2012. watering soil from the bottom? pros and cons? Rating: 5

[silent leprechaun]

One word.... gravity.... I'll let you do the mathematics !

[elephantman]

One word.... gravity.... I'll let you do the mathematics !

Gee thanks

[MedicineMan11]

Let me give you another word, "Oxygen" you will find it good to water from the bottom because your soil will not be compacted and will allow more oxygen to the roots. The roots go to the bottom of the pot first and the water will wick up, therefore it is a more efficient use of water.

[GanjaRobPDX]

I avoid watering from the bottom. Doing so prevents nutrient salts from being flushed out. The end result is soil toxicity and nutrient lockout. If you do water from the bottom, be sure to flush from the top.
also, make sure your roots aren't constantly soaking due to risk of pythium and other root diseases.

[Weezard]

Allow me to expand on SL's gravity comment.
And on the oxygen comment.
You have already heard why watering from the bottom is discouraged.
Here's why I water from the top.

Gravity;
Done properly, the water will drain through the soil.
As it begins to run out the bottom, it creates a suction that draws air in behind it.

Oxygen;
Done properly, the water will drain through the soil.
As it begins to run out the bottom, it creates a suction that draws air in behind it.

Done properly, watering from the bottom, does no harm.
The problem being, it is more difficult to do properly than top watering.

Jus' 2 cents.

Weeze

[mendokid]

I water from the bottom with clean water (7ph) to offset the overly acidic situation that occurs at the bottom of a soil pot. However this is suboptimal and a lazy fix I use when I don't have the time/patience to properly flush from the top and re fertilize.

Agreed that in general, watering from the top is best.