The bottom, white container on the first photo, is a reused 1 gallon ice cream bucket. They work great as cache pots for hanging plants in big pots. When you water the plant from the top, the cache catches all the water. It slowly evaporates through the soil and plant. You can see the water line about 1/2 way up.

The 2 bay laurels are on glass beads that I got from BuyNothing. The African violets are on small stones I collected in the gravel in the driveway. I use anything that will allow evaporation and elevate the plant pot.