Recently I planted 1 plant outside that I had vegged for about 2 weeks indoors. The land used is completely clay under about 1 inch of topsoil. We dug a 2 foot deep hole that is about 2.5 feet wide. We filled the hole with topsoil and perlite. It has rained for the past couple of days and when we went to the site today, there was standing water in our hole, coming up the stem a little ways. We obviously took the plant out and put it in a pot. At this point, I am wondering what can be done to get our holes to drain. The clay is so thick you could make pottery out of it. Water just isn't going through it. Here is my idea. We take a large pot and fill it with soil and the plant. We then set the pot within the hole so that there is space below the pot for water to sit. Here is a quick ms paint I made so you can see the idea. We are going to be planting 8 more plants in the same area, and we need to know how we can plant without the water problems. Any help would be much appreciated. I have no problem spending some money to fix this problem, but it has to work now, so we can have a successful season.
I'm still looking for more help on this subject. I have done my research and soil additives just won't work quick enough. What can I do now to help with this problem?