Alan Walker wrote:

Brent: You'll be surprised to find that the difference in soil
volume between low, flat containers and cascade pots is often
pretty negligible. It's an optical illusion which makes us think
that. Check it out sometime.
Alan Walker
http://bonsai-bci.com http://LCBSBonsai.org

it is a law of physic
a flat container retains moist as the container has a flat wide
bottom and some holes so the water adhere on a large surface and
sticks to grains that touch it ,if you put the same quantity soil in a
cylinder and pour onto the same quantity of water with the same surface
of holes ( proportionally) the water by the gravity will have a tendency
to go down and down until the bottom
so the surface that will retain maximum of moist is the flat zone
around the drainage hole and the grains adhering to it

a easy experience
is to water a rectangular pot
and wait for the water flow out , when it ends take theh pot and
lift one side at 45° for few seconds and you'll see how much water will
come out again
this is why is adviced to put pots inclined when you have heavy
water falls to let the water fall out of drain holes by gravity



Mark Hill wrote:
Brent;
It appears from your drainage logic that my cascade pots should
contain soil that is more able to retain water at higher
elevations. This logic also suggests that I shouldn't water my
cascades as often, and that dryness tests should be performed
lower into the soil. Hmmmmmm..... now you've got me thinking....
maybe I should consider changing the soil in my cascades this
spring.
-----Original Message-----
From: Brent Walston

Mark
I wouldn't go overboard with this phenomenon. If your cascade is
doing
just fine with your current system, then don't fix something that
isn't
broke. Just keep it in mind for the future. You can increase the
water
holding capacity by changing the soil slightly or using a
slightly
larger pot.

Cascade pots typically hold more soil anyhow than low flat
pots. So, take all these factors into consideration. Also
consider the
species. If you have a cascade juniper, they prefer to be on the
dry
side anyhow.
Brent EvergreenGardenworks.com


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