Typically houseplants need to be watered (like gardens) early in the day if watering gets the leaves wet, because wet leaves overnight encourages disease and insects on them.

Did anyone's Granma ever raised African violets, you may remember her pouring water in their saucers, letting them sit an hour, then emptying the remaining water into a bucket or pot.

What? Why? Essentially, it doesn't promote bacterial or fungal growth on the soil surface! In fact, the water wicking up from the bottom usually doesn't get all the way to the surface. (African violets are notoriously susceptible to fungal diseases and tiny insects.)

I would like to point out this is the watering method my daughter's pulmonologist and my ID doc recommended to us if we were going to continue to raise houseplants.

My method (most of my plants are fairly large) - pour water in the saucers, let sit 1 hour, use a turkey baster to remove the excess. Once every few months I carry them to the sink for a 30 minute soak.

Andi's method (smaller pots) - 1/2 fill a rubber tray with water, soak plants 30 minutes, then drain and return to their saucers. Another advantage - nutrient don't wash out of the soil, they get sucked in. So if you use fertilizer, use half strength and half as often as recommended.

Between this and gravel on the top, it's a pretty safe way to have plants around, even if you are immunocompromised. I take it a step further - my HEPA room air filter sits right below the plants.
Sue