The fabric pots or plastic bags, I will most likely buy for later when I have less plants that need to be potted. The pest issue is what concerned me the most with the fabric pots as I can imagine the fabric material getting very moist at times.
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I use fabric for my overwintered peppers, olive trees, and bigger figs. clay for smaller figs that want more water in winter.
I also use the biggest cheap fabric for artichokes, they need to overwinter here to produce anything. plant/start them now, pot goes outside all summer then indoors over winter, then into the ground next spring after frost dates. then I reuse the pot to start a new round
I somehow have overwintered a mouse melon/mini cuke in one of these and I’m not sure how I accomplished that. it’s a mystery
avocado, quince, other seedlings or saplings that need overwinter get 5-10 gallon buckets.
I’m very cheap and don’t like to buy new stuff
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I bought 15 gallon grow bags from Costco last year. I thought the 15 gallon grow bags were small. I can’t imagine a tree overwintering in a 5 or 10 gallon grow bag. It seems like the size of roots would be bigger when they come from the nursery.
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I got 25 and 30 gallon ones for the figs. so far my trees are pretty small though, the oldest is 5 years on.
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That is exactly what happens. The fabric pot roots stay small and fluffy. It essentially allows one to get away with a smaller pot or reduce the frequency of up potting.
I would say the biggest con to grow bags is the airflow causes them to dry out faster. As many have noted. I found bottom wicking watering super helpful. I throw mine in a kiddy pool and flood em a few inches till they soak it up.
These are the same plants grown in a plastic pot and a grow bag.
Tangled from pot rounding:
Fabric pot airpruned: This one grew thru a 3 gallon so it was dropped onto the top of a 5 gallon and let grow thru. See the fluffy fine roots.
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A significant part to consider is what you want your pots for, and were you want your compromises to be.
I grow a number of plants to sell, and I love the plastic panda bags. I size them to optimize root health; I use bags that are a tad large for plant size, which cost me in space, weight, and amount of soil. The problem is that commercial nurseries prefer to sacrifice root health for a higher density / better profits.
Panda bags are of higher quality than most bulk pots and way cheaper. It is up to you to size them right for the plant in question.
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If you use fabric pots, stick to sizes you can grasp and lift from the bottom or get a handcart/dolly to move them. The handles are just worthless.
Watering is also a problem, so if you don’t have an automated watering system of some kind they take a lot of attention.
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It depends on what you want to grow. There are 4 options and a multitude of sizes and shapes.
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Fabric pots - have advantages that roots tend to air prune and are relatively cheap, disadvantages that they dry out quickly so watering is a pita that often leads to dead plants. These are useful for some trees and shrubs where automated watering mitigates drying.
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Peat pots or manure pots - These have weak structure, don’t hold up to handling very well, dry out very rapidly, are relatively cheap, tend to air prune. These can be useful for short term growth of smaller woody plants. Do NOT use them to produce seedlings such as tomatoes and peppers.
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Grow bags - Available in larger sizes which makes them useful for pecan and other species that need a lot of volume. They can be handled for a couple of years with minor problems. They can dry out rapidly, especially in bright sun. Recommend automated watering and use white bags in southern climates.
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Plastic containers - These are ideal for some plants such as tomato/pepper seedlings. They break down in sunlight over time. Handling is generally no problem. They hold water well, sometimes too well as they can develop phytothora if over-watered. The primary disadvantage is that plants readily become root-bound and roots tend to circle which causes problems for the root system long term. I use plastic containers of various sizes to produce woody ornamentals such as forsythia and larger pots to grow pecan seedlings for eventual grafting. I produce several thousand tomato and pepper seedlings yearly in plastic cell trays.
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I bought panda bags as I needed higher quantities, and I did find them to be cheaper than other options. They were also available in bigger sizes which I really liked. I really only need them for a year or two to keep my grafts in before I plant them in their final location.
Thanks for all your help everyone!
I did that one year, then washed the bags and folded them back to their original packed shape. They were 100% every bit as good as new. The 1 and 2 gallon bags are extra tall; I can chose how deep I want them to be and for shallower plantings I just roll the lips, so they are very flexible. On top of that the material is very strong, I can grab them by the plastic and toss them around without worrying about them ripping or stretching.
Drain is marginal, but I decided to resist poking extra holes on them and instead be more meticulous with my watering.
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For me, I favor plastic heavy duty containers, the ones I bought are made well.
The ones I bought from AML are very flimsy but very tuff and light. The other brand I have also strong and easy to move, 15 and 20 gl squat ones.
All my containers has stood the test of times, going on 15 years or so.
My trees get new media every 3 years, especially figs. If you feed them well, they will fill a 20gl container in no time. Citrus get root pruning every 3 years, just add new medium if root seams ok, but still favor total medium replacement.
I use to write the date on the container but now I just pull the tree out of the container. WORK??, sure, like good looking trees, even if they produce nothing. Hobby EXTREME!!
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