Snasnx..what is it? LOL..Is the material wicker? Do you have a pot inside a pot? If the inner pot is shorter, that surely would prevent root rot, and talk well-drainage..
BTW, what's the plant? It looks like a spider/pony-tail/cordyline. LOL..it's pretty whatever and looks good in that style container..Toni

Toni, please do not over read the picture. There is neither wicker, nor double pots.

It is a plant in a simple plastic basket (full of holes).

Hi Snasxs! Neat idea! I don't think my problem was root rot after all, I think the problem was a combination of extreme variations of heat (we had installed a gas heater vent near the window, combined with me not giving the gardenia enough fertilizer.

Great idea indeed. Many gardeners out of passion water the pot too much to cause root rot.