Can you plant succulents in plastic cups?

[baNINAsplitt]

Hi!

I was just wondering if you can plant cacti and succulents in plastic cups like the Starbucks cups?

Thank you!

[ElieEstephane]

Yes you can as long as you poke holes in the bottom and cup is not transparent.

[baNINAsplitt]

Yes you can as long as you poke holes in the bottom and cup is not transparent.

Sadly, my cup is transparent Should I paint it or cover it with something or should I just not use the cup?

[ElieEstephane]

Algae will grow if you use tranparent cups. If you must use it cover it with tape

[baNINAsplitt]

Algae will grow if you use tranparent cups. If you must use it cover it with tape

Got it! Thanks so much

[esp_imaging]

Hi!

I was just wondering if you can plant cacti and succulents in plastic cups like the Starbucks cups?

Thank you!

Yes!

I find some food-use containers really useful - my Indian take-away used to supply short wide pots which were great for seedlings amd low, spreading plants.

Transparent containers often get a build up of algae inside. For healthy, vigorous plants this isn't a practical problem. I wouldn't worry about it.

If you have a porous mix which allows to good aeration of the roots, you don't need drainage holes! This probably sounds like heresy to many people, but if you water carefully, I find it very useful - it means that the compost at the base of the container stays slightly damper than the surface, so encourages deep root growth. I think that some young plants grow better like this than in small pots with drainage holes, which dry out very quickly.
Having said this, if you over-water, especially with a compost which doesn't have good aeration, a lack of drainage holes can rapidly lead to fatal problems. A second problem is that harmful salts in tap water gradually build up.

So, on balance, I'd say containers without drainage holes can be very useful for plants that are going to be potted on soon (e.g. new cuttings, or seedlings), which will only have a maximum of 1 year in the container.