I think these will be a game changer for me… i have 250 bags ready for when the weather breaks here.
Can you elaborate on this? Does it use wet paper pulp, or sheets of newspaper? Are they small seedling pots or larger size?
It used whole newspaper sheets wetted and pressed into a form. You just tear off the excess that sticks out. I was amazed that they held their shape as well as they did when filled with soil and plants. They were small, I’d say like a 4" pot.
I googled “paper pot maker mold” and a bunch came up! It was totally different from what I imagined, but they seem popular.
Has anyone used sheep wool to line plastic pots (thinking how it might affect root growth and temperature regulation) or as mulch for in ground and potted fruit plants?
hair has a high N once broken down. using wool as a mulch should work pretty good to hold moisture and regulate soil temps. id use it. it might steal N used in ground though.
I love the craft mesh idea. It makes for a high albedo airpot. There’s a bunch of cheap plastic mesh rounds on Amazon too if you wanted to implement a bottom.
found locally. between 14"-18" diameter. not sure what to use them for because they are like really small raised beds
I have though about using something like that to put my extra rootstocks in for stooling.
21 gallon utility tub from home Depot is tempting me to not use my new grow bags… Has anyone used these tubs before?
I have use them before. They are good for 3 - 5 years. The sun will beat them down and they will becomes fragile. They will likely break if you move them after that time period. They can last longer than 5 years undisturbed.
Any fabric pots that are more shaped like rectangular planters? I don’t need super-deep 15-20gallon round fabric pots but something like a somewhat deep 3-5gallon fabric pots but 3 of them side-by-side (but instead of doing 3 side by side, just a larger rectangular cheap fabric pot). Something to replace this (which is what i get locally) at at a cheaper cost:
I like to use as it has more surface area to put many seedlings in until its a few inches tall to transfer elsewhere.
on those flimsy pots from amazon:
compared to the bags i was using they arent that bad if youre putting them in another container/structure to hold them in shape. you’d really need to do anyways because they would tip. if they had them in 3x9/12 instead of 4", they might be perfect. time will tell.
I use them all the time… i have about 5 of them for transporting wood chips, or potting soil… i have two that i use as watering stations… im only on year 2 of them but so far they are the best muck tubs that i have had. They are nice and strong.
However if you want pots to grow in im not sure how many years you could get before UV gets them… Im leaving them outside to see… 5 years would be worth it to me.
These would be a better long term solution… i think. They are sold at various vendors on the innerwebs.
I have spent way more money filling my bags than i thought i would… i guess i didnt factor those maths into things. My mix is 2 parts ProMix or Ball Professional Mix i have had to buy both, 1 part pine fines/pine compost, 1 part pine bark mini nuggets. Some folks say that i will have a huge issue keeping them watered but from what i can tell once the pine bark gets soaked, it holds water for a very long time… I am top dressing each bag with about 2 inches of old woodchips which are also very soaked.
My local place has ‘new’ to me ProMix… maybe its marketing?
AGTIV® REACH™ technology develops the root system, increasing nutrient and water uptake, which promotes plant growth, robustness and vigor
Expands root system
Enhances nutrient and water uptake
Produces more vigorous and healthy plants
All i really care about is root system… and keeping them alive until i can plant them in the Fall.
All of the potted trees i see at Rural King/Menards and the Box stores seem to be potted in nearly 99 percent pine bark and 1 percent of a sandy mix and some blue colored fertilizer or something. The pots are always full to the max with roots…and roots going thru the bark etc.
My local Walmart is carrying pallets of Pine Bark Mulch/Pine Fines which ever you call it… i love the stuff. I sometimes make my own by putting mini nuggets in my woodchipper when i cant find any… Im going to stock up on it.
Can you post a picture of the bags that y’all’s store is carrying? I went on a hunt for the same pine fines that you had posted a couple of years ago and never found them. I resorted to collecting shed pine bark and trying to grind it myself in a machine I built a couple of years ago for shredding leaves in order to compost them more quickly.
this is what our menards has:
i think ill try using some but it would just be as filler. i think it only lowers the ph initially or not at all. same with peat. i like peat but its more expensive and has that hydrophobic quality when dry.
love this guy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00nNA-RsFds
are you going to use this or just go with something simple and cheap? if just till fall id go with simple and cheap
My nearby Lowe’s had these last year and they were great! Right now it shows them out of stock and no longer available. I have chatted with a Lowe’s representative on 2 separate occasions. The first one gave me a 4 week timeframe of them restocking (which was about 6 weeks ago) and the most recent one said they will be restocking this product but they don’t have a timeline in which they will be restocked.
Pine mulch for me goes in my bluebs, brambles and strawberries. I know for sure the potted trees ive bought are mostly pine bark broken down into ‘mulch’. So its highly used by me. I also propagate in it. On the bag it says that worms love it also which isnt desirable for potted things but if worms like it then theres ‘black gold’ potential in the inground stuffs. Its cheap too so theres that.
This is at my local feed store