Growing two plants in one container can be a fun activity in your garden.
But is it possible to grow two or more plants in the same container? What happens when you plant multiple plants in the pot?
I'm sure you must have many such questions in your mind. So, let's try and understand more about this topic in today's guide.
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Can You Grow Two Plants In One Container?
Yes, you can grow two plants in one container.
In fact, there is no limit to growing multiple plants together in a pot.
Theoritically, you can plant as many plants as you like in a single pot.
But as you know, there are always constraints in following this gardening practice. Even though you want to plant many plants in your container, you should probably think twice before doing so.
When you plant multiple plants together, they look stunning for a couple of weeks. Later, they can't keep up with the growth rate as the competition increases among them.
In the following section, I have explained some of these concepts in detail. So, do check them out before you go ahead and plant too many plants in one container.
11 Tips For Growing Two Plants In One Container
Here are the tips you need to know for this process -
1. Check The Pot Size
Pot size plays a huge role when you want to plant many plants together.
But why is it so important? Well, when you plant a single plant in the pot, it doesn't require a lot of space in the beginning.
On the other hand, when you plant two or more plants in the same pot, the space and soil in the pot remain the same. Ultimately, this creates a scarcity of resources in the pot.
Since each plant tries to grow at an optimum growth rate, it will continue to look for more resources and compete with the other plants in the same pot.
When this situation arises, the weaker or smaller plant often doesn't get enough resources to grow. And it either finds it difficult to survive or remains short in size in the longer run.
Solution:
Get a bigger-sized pot for your plants.
If you want to plant two plants in one container, it should have space for at least three plants. The excess space will always be helpful when the plants grow in size.
2. Check The Compatibility Of Plants
Like pot size, plant compatibility is very important in this type of planting technique.
If the plants are incompatible, they will struggle for water, nutrients, space, and sunlight. And it can be a big issue for comparatively weaker plants.
When there is an imbalance in plants' compatibilities, the dominant plant will always outgrow the other plants in the pot. It will also not leave much space and resources for other plants.
Apart from that, if you are going to plant the same variety of houseplants, you shouldn't select plants with vigorous growth. Try to choose the ones that grow at a low-moderate pace.
More importantly, you should avoid species that are invasive in nature.
For e.g. Mint and Aloe Vera
Both these indoor plants are invasive, and they often outgrow the potting medium within a few months or so. If you want to grow them in the same pot, you will have to use pruning and low-light supply methods to reduce their growth rate naturally.
Solution:
Look for compatible plants only.
Here's a chart of some of the best companion plants -
| Plant Name | Companion Plants |
|---|---|
| Basil | Lettuce, Peppers, Tomatoes |
| Cucumber | Beans, Radish, Lettuce, Oregano, Sunflowers |
| Lettuce | Onions, Chives, Peppers, Spinach, Radish, Eggplant |
| Melons | Herbs, Marigold |
| Spinach | Cilantro, Basil, Peas, Marigold, Beans |
| Tomatoes | Celery, Carrot, Marigold, Basil, Parsley, Onion |
| Peace Lilly | Arrowhead, Pothos, Peacock Plant |
| Pothos | Spider Plant, Philodendron |
| Snake Plant | ZZ Plant |
3. Plant Slow Growing Plants Together
Slow growth plants are the safest option when planting two or more plants in one container.
This type of plant does not require many resources, and they do not ask for a lot of care as well. So, you can easily neglect these plants for a few days if you are too busy with something else.
The other useful aspect of growing such plants is that they do not want more space. It means you can get away with planting them together in relatively small pots.
4. Do Not Add More Than 2-3 Plants To Your Pot
It doesn't matter what species you wish to plant for companion planting.
Because quality is always more important than quantity.
In this perspective, the quality is pretty much related to the overall growth of the plants. And that's what you should strive for while growing multiple plants in the same pot.
In my personal experience, the pot with 2-3 companion plants has always done great in the longer run.
When you plant more plants than this number, they will struggle for all the resources irrespective of their compatibility and growing patterns.
5. Don't Forget To Water Them Regularly
Yes, it's important to increase the watering frequency for this specific pot.
Otherwise, the lack of moisture in the soil can lead to various issues in some plants.
Since the no. of plants in the pot are more than a single-plant pot, they will need more water. So, you should ensure that these plants get enough water supply regularly.
Along with this, the pot should have 3-4 drainage holes at the bottom. These holes will prevent any water logging situation in the pot.
6. Increase The Fertilizer Dose
Fertilizers are known to enhance the growth of plants.
When you plant more than one plant per pot, it becomes inevitable to feed more fertilizers to achieve the standard growth rate. If you don't provide enough fertilizers, these plants will surely have lackluster growth.
So, what's the solution?
Simply increase the dose of fertilizers or feed them more frequently. Both these techniques can be helpful if used correctly.
7. You Should Transplant These Plants Every Year
Transplanting often helps in rejuvenating old plants. It is one of the most useful gardening techniques to manage the growth of your indoor and outdoor plants.
When you have a pot with two or more plants, you must use this technique to revive some of the slow-growing plants. You can also separate a few plants from each other while transplanting them to a new pot.
As for time duration, you should consider doing it every year or so. If you see outstanding growth within the six months of planting two plants in one container, you can even perform this step within 7-8 months.
8. Prune Unwanted Branches and Leaves Regularly
If you don't feel like transplanting the plants, you can use the traditional pruning technique.
For those who don't know, pruning is an essential technique to remove overgrown branches and damaged leaves from the plants. It not only adds to the beautification of plants but also helps increase the airflow between them.
So, get a sharp scissor or garden shears and prune the unwanted leaves and branches from the plants.
Note: If the plants have not grown a lot, you can perform light trimming in the beginning. Try to get rid of as many branches as you can that have grown inwards.
9. Avoid Cutting The Main Stem Of Your Plants
It is the one thing you need to remember while pruning the plant.
You should never cut the main stem from the plant, as it can promote more lateral growth in the future.
The plant will also stop growing upwards. Therefore, be careful when you remove the branches from the plant.
10. Put The Pot In A Sunny Place
Plants thrive when they get a good amount of sunlight.
Without sunlight, it becomes difficult for them to produce food for the entire plant. To solve this problem, you should put your multi-plant container in a sunny place.
It should also help in keeping the plant safe from fungal issues.
11. Make Sure There Is Enough Airflow In The Room
When there are more than two plants in one container, it often becomes challenging to avoid congestion between them.
As the plants grow, they become bushy and try to occupy as much space as possible in the pot. This could lead to several issues, including increased humidity, wet leaves, stem, etc.
So, if you want to avoid the resultant external issues, you must keep this pot in an airy space.
Things To Remember While Planting Two Plants Together
Here is a list of things you must consider before growing two plants in the same container -
- Place the plants far away from each other while planting in the pot.
- Remove inward branches at the time of potting.
- Keep the soil surface dry and clean all the time.
- Spray neem oil as and when required.
- Do not mist the closely planted plants.
- Avoid soil that holds too much water in it.
- Use a combination of tall and dwarf plants for companion planting.
In the next section, you can find the answers to some of the frequently asked questions by the readers.
FAQs
Yes, you can combine two or more plants with the help of different grafting techniques.
Plants that do not interfere with the growth of other plants should be planted together. You may refer to the chart provided in this guide.
The seeds will grow like any other seeds, provided the conditions are favorable for their growth.
If you don't want to transplant them into other pots, these seeds will turn into mature plants in the future. Of course, it also depends on other factors that I have discussed earlier in this guide.
There is no specific number as to how many plants there should be in a container.
Having said that, it's always better to have up to 2-3 plants in the same pot. It gives enough room for these plants to grow in their entire life cycle.
Generally, when you plant more than two plants in a medium-sized pot, the plants try to compete with each other.
It usually results in an imbalance in their individual growth. So, try to avoid planting more plants in small or medium-sized containers.
Over To You
Although growing two plants in one container seems like an amazing idea, you should also look at the cons of this process.
If the container is not big enough, you will always have difficulties growing multiple plants. That's why you should think twice before going ahead with this idea.
Meanwhile, if you have any queries related to this topic, do let me know in the comments below.
Please share this guide with your friends and family if you found it helpful.
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