Yes - but use it as a cover pot, not as the pot the plant lives in. Keep the plant in its plastic nursery pot, set that inside the decorative planter, and lift it out to water. Excess water drains into the outer pot, and you tip it away. Plant directly into a sealed planter and water collects at the bottom where you cannot see it, which is how most houseplants actually die.
Why standing water kills
Roots need air as much as water. Waterlogged soil pushes the air out, the fine root hairs suffocate and rot, and the plant then cannot take up water even though it is sitting in it. The symptoms look exactly like drought - drooping, yellowing leaves - so people water more, and the plant declines faster. If a plant is wilting in wet soil, the problem is drainage, not thirst.
The setup that works
| Layer | What it does |
|---|---|
| Nursery pot with holes | Lets water leave the root ball |
| 2-3 cm clay pebbles | Keeps the pot base above any water |
| Decorative planter | Catches the water you then pour away |
Fifteen minutes after watering, tip out whatever has collected. That single habit does more for houseplants than any feed.
Size: 2 to 4 cm larger, no more
Take a planter 2 to 4 cm wider than the root ball. Potting on into something far larger seems generous but holds a volume of wet soil the roots cannot reach, and that soil stays saturated for weeks. The result is the same root rot, arrived at from the opposite direction.
Outdoors and frost
Only put outside what is stated as suitable. Unglazed earthenware absorbs water, and when that water freezes it expands and splits the pot from the inside - which is why a terracotta pot that survived three summers cracks in its first hard winter. Glazed and sealed pots fare better, but even those should be raised on feet so they do not freeze to a wet surface.
Signs you are getting it wrong
Yellowing lower leaves with damp soil means too much water, not too little. A sour, swampy smell from the pot means the roots have already begun to rot; lift the plant out, cut away anything brown and mushy, and repot into fresh soil. White crust on the surface is mineral build-up from tap water, which is harmless but a sign the pot never drains fully.
Protect what is underneath
Put a saucer or felt pads under any planter standing on wood. Even a fully sealed pot produces condensation on its base, and the ring it leaves on an untreated or waxed surface is difficult to remove. On a side table or windowsill this is worth doing from day one rather than after you notice the mark.
If you would rather not deal with inner pots at all, a woven basket from our baskets and storage boxes makes a good cover pot - line it with a plastic saucer, and you get the same protection with a softer look.
By Meike van Dongen · Veem, Amsterdam · 18 August 2026
