Jeff Layman wrote:

If the pot has dried out, and the compost has shrunk (particularly if
it is soilless), then watering can have little effect as the water
will just run down the inside of the pot and not wet the compost
sufficiently. It is useful to observe how quickly the water exits the
pots after it is applied. It may help to add some washing-up liquid to
the water as that will help it to penetrate the compost. It can also
help to stand the pot in a large saucer.


When my pots and planters get like this, I water sparingly at about 7pm,
then go over again an hour later and finally a good drenching late on, this
way, the first watering dampens the surface, the second penetrates a little
further and the final one is the only one that actually gets any real
moisture into the growing medium.

All my pots, baskets and planters have a home made reservoir of about two
inch - plastic sheet folded into a saucer shape at the bottom so this will
waterlog before overflowing and allowing drainage. Definately an improvement
on last year's inch