Watering your plants while you're away: our simple methods

Heading off for a few days or a few weeks needn't spell doom for your plants, as long as you plan ahead. No need for anything elaborate: a good watering, the right spot and a suitable water reserve are usually enough. Here are our methods, including our favourite: the oya, a ceramic water reservoir that waters your plants for several days running.

Before you go: preparing your plants

• Water generously the day before you leave, then let the excess drain away thoroughly. Don't leave the pot sitting in water inside its cache-pot: roots left waterlogged for days will eventually rot.
• Keep them out of direct sunlight. A plant pressed against a south-facing window will dry out much faster. Move it to a cooler room, but one that's still bright: left in the dark, it would suffer just as much as if it were thirsty.
• Group them together. Clustered in one spot, your plants benefit from a slightly more humid atmosphere and are easier to tend to using the methods below.
• Give them a quick tidy-up: remove any damaged or yellowing leaves and check that no insects have moved in.
• No fertiliser right before you leave. It encourages growth, and so greater water needs, at precisely the moment no one will be there to water them.

How long can your plants manage on their own?

It all depends on the plant, the season and how long you're away.

• Cacti and succulents store water in their stems or leaves. According to the Royal Horticultural Society, they're the only houseplants that can do without any watering system while you're away. Le Poète, La Coquette or The Bon Vivant will wait patiently for you: a normal watering before you leave is enough. You'll find our tips in the succulents guide.
• In winter, the RHS reckons most houseplants can go one to two weeks without care, provided the room isn't too cold and the soil is moist to begin with.
• In summer, the heat speeds up drying out: for a green plant, a water reserve becomes useful as soon as you're away for more than a few days.
• Beyond two weeks, nothing beats a neighbour, friend or loved one popping in to water, again according to the RHS.

Five simple ways to keep your plant watered while you're away

1. The oya, the ceramic water reservoir

This is the most elegant method, and we've devoted an entire chapter to it further down. Buried in the pot, the oya releases water of its own accord, at the pace the soil dries out.

2. The capillary wick

Place a large container of water next to the pot, at the same height or slightly higher. Slip one end of an absorbent wick (a strip of capillary matting, a cotton or woollen cord) into the bottom of the container, and push the other end a few centimetres into the soil. The water travels up the wick and gradually moistens the soil. The RHS recommends this method for large, standalone plants. Try it a few days before you leave, to check that the soil stays moist without becoming waterlogged.

3. Capillary matting in the sink or bath

For several plants at once, lay a piece of capillary matting (available from garden centres) over the draining board of the sink or next to the bath, and let one end hang into the sink or bath filled with water. Place your plants on the damp matting, pressing gently so they're in good contact with it. This method only works with pots that have drainage holes, and the RHS reserves it for short absences.

4. The clay pebble tray

Fill a large tray with clay pebbles, add water without covering them, then set your pots on top. The base of the pots should never sit directly in the water. This method mainly keeps a humid atmosphere around the plant: it suits short absences and plants that don't need much water.

5. The transparent cloche

For a small plant and a short absence, the RHS recommends covering it with a cloche or transparent lid, which retains moisture. Prop the cloche up on small stakes so it doesn't touch the foliage, and keep the plant out of direct sunlight, which would quickly raise the temperature underneath.

The oya: the ceramic water reservoir

The oya is an age-old watering technique: an unglazed terracotta jar, buried near the plants and filled with water. As the University of Arizona explains, the ceramic is porous enough to let water seep slowly through its walls. The drier the soil around it, the more water it draws out. Roots often end up growing all around the oya to drink directly from it.

Our By Charlot oya

We designed our oya to deserve a proper look. It is handmade in Portugal by a workshop of ceramicists, in a ceramic chosen for its porosity. Its neck stays visible above the soil and becomes a decorative detail in its own right, in a striped or léopard pattern, in several colours. It holds 35cl of water and measures 8cm in diameter and 14cm in height: it therefore fits nicely into medium and large pots.

How to use it

1. Bury the oya in the pot, close to the plant, leaving the neck above the soil. The easiest way is to install it when repotting, so as not to damage the roots.
2. Fill it with water. The ceramic gently diffuses it into the soil.
3. Fill it again once empty. Depending on the size of the pot, the plant and the season, expect anywhere from several days to a week of autonomy.

Our tips for leaving with peace of mind

• Install it a few weeks before you leave. The University of Arizona notes that roots need time to reach the oya: during this period, keep watering as usual. You'll also know, before you go, how many days it lasts in your home.
• For a longer absence, fill it right before you close the door and ask a friend or neighbour to top it up again a week later: one visit does the work of several.
• Care: rinse it from time to time to preserve the porosity of the ceramic, which limescale and mineral salts in the water can gradually clog. Clean it by hand with a soft cloth, never in the dishwasher. Outdoors, bring it inside before the hardest frosts.

And for everyday watering, our ceramic watering cans, also made in Portugal, hold 80 cl.

When you're back

• Touch the soil before watering. If it's dry, water as normal, without overdoing it to make up for lost time: the RHS points out that waterlogged soil encourages grey mould.
• Check the leaves. A plant left without water is more vulnerable to red spider mites: wipe the foliage with a damp cloth at the slightest doubt.
• Remove any dry leaves and put each plant back in its usual spot, in the light.

And if you're after a plant that will never hold your getaways against you, take a look at our easy-care plants.

Sources

• Royal Horticultural Society, Houseplants: holiday care.
• Amy Nickel and Andrew Brischke, Irrigating with Ollas, University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, 2021.