What size drainage holes should container pots have?

Something some people don't remember to do is to punch out the drainage holes in their containers for gardening. Because many people use pots for other purposes than just gardening, many containers now come with the marks for where the drainage holes should be, but it is up to you to pop them out before you add the soil.

If you need to make your own drainage holes, use a drill bill 1/2" in size - or use a smaller drill bit, redrilling the same hole until it is 1/2" in size. Using 1/2" drainage holes will give you adequate drainage of water for your plants. You will need to have multiple holes depending on the size of the container. You need about five holes per square foot.

After you drill the holes, you can add a layer of newspaper to the bottom of the pot before adding soil if you are concerned about soil loss through the drainage holes.