Why do novices always use clay pots?

[keith]

With unglazed clay I had exactly the problems mentioned: Roots only on the inner surface of the pot, and on repotting problems with getting the plants out without seriously hurting the whole of the root system."

I just transplanted about 10 big ariocarpus out of clay and It was hard to get them out I used a hammer on some of the pots just broke them out. It was Winter so losing fine roots is not too bad. And they went back into clay the porous kind with the white buildup. These are 6" pots and kinda deep with mostly pumice soil. In the summer i submerge the pots under water about once a month to water them. Ariocarpus are pretty tough as long as they are mostly dry in this case clay pots means mostly dry.

My big echinocactus same thing. Smaller cactus in plastic pots small clay dries out too fast.

[keith]

lots of rain finally so all cactus under plastic except a few big cactus like a golden barrel whcih is just too big to move and also in a clay pot. this big guy will need a transplant soon that will be loads of fun. I will use the hammer for sure, and gloves. And probably a shovel and 2x4 pieces of wood and some help from my kids haha they will be so pleased_not. Dudleyas out in the rain are doing great as well as my jade plants. Clay and plastic pots just random for succulents but I do shade them in Summer.

[DaveW]

If you can't move a large pot you can always throw a piece of clear plastic sheet over it to keep the rain off.

[ElieEstephane]

I found rubber mallets extremely helpful with repotting from porous clay. I almost always get roots completely intact when i repeatedly and gently hit the pot with a rubber mallet

[nachtkrabb]

Hi Dave,

I admit: I do like black-and-white photos and love to use b&w myself. But it depends on the subject. When the subject is very graphical or when I want to show structures & forms, b&w is better for me than colour photography. The latter is fine to document my plants or for typical holiday scenes. So I prefer to use each according to subject.

When I look at how I treat my plants, with the time my style is changing. At least every 2nd year there is something new. I try to better pots, the composition of neighbours within a pot, soil, watering & fertilizing, surrounding conditions etc. for all my plants. They teach me a lot, so I change and adapt. Of course the (a bit random) selection of plants living in my collection prejudices my current opinion(s), as well as the current climatic conditions at my home -- they are my teachers. Yes, our climate has definitely changed, less snow / shorter winters / longer & hotter & dryer summers / more wind / different clouds.

So maybe in some years I will swear on the bible that clay pots are paramount and ideal, and will think everybody a bloody idiot who uses plastic pots...?!

N.

Stop -- when showing the spines and their growth pattern or the growth pattern e.g. of the warts of a Mammillaria, b&w may be better suitable than colour photography.

[Spikylover]

What about using rich potting soil with porous clay? Seems to me you get the best of both worlds

Rachel.

[7george]

What about using rich potting soil with porous clay? Seems to me you get the best of both worlds

Rachel.

The problem there will be that roots grow along the wall of that pot and that soil dries up quickly. Also walls heat up easily from outside sun and these roots too. Rich soil is good for some cacti and succulents but these usually like wet soil too. Anyway this combination may work well in some cases so feel free to try it and show us the result.

[Aloinopsis]

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned before or not, but for the record, clay pots are appropriate for many species of cacti and succulents when grown in some climates. Not all.

I live in a temperate rain forest (rain 300+ days a year, heavy orographic fog every day) and I have kept xerophytes for years. I found that in plastic pots the same outdoor plants will rot due to ambient humidity around the roots, whereas in clay pots they seem to breathe more. Bryophytes grow on my porch, that's how humid it is. Granted, most people don't live in a damp, humid, place like this. But if you do, you should experiment and you may find similar results.

[DaveW]

As said before, a lot of the modern clay pots in the UK are no longer porous as the old ones used to be. They are now fired at higher temperatures than in the past to prevent them laminating in frosty climates outdoors due to water trapped in the walls freezing. Obviously it depends which type are available in your country, but if they do not get that white limy deposit on the outside in use they are not porous.

The white deposit on the outside of the clay pot in this link shows what I mean. If it were not porous it could not come through the wall and remain on the outside surface when the water evaporated.

http://www.cactiguide.com/forum/viewtop ... ts#p357085

It also depends on what you mean by clay pots breathing? Porous ones certainly pass water to the outside where it evaporates, but can a clay pot "breathe in air" whilst the pours are saturated with water? You read many different claims about them breathing air, but the only "scientific" test I ever read was one researcher who stuck a sucker from one of those children's bow and arrow sets on the side of one with no soil in it. After about three weeks it had still not fallen off, therefore he assumed if air was passing through the walls it would have broken the suction and the sucker fallen off in that time. However no real scientific tests seem to have been done on the subject.

[Aloinopsis]

All of mine get the white buildup on the outside although it usually takes a couple of seasons of use before it's noticeable, because (I think) some of it washes off in the rain. I do have a couple really big pots that have it basically on the entire pot.

[Aloinopsis]

Most of these are old pictures but you can see the white buildup. I do tend to clean it off occasionally.

FB_IMG_1551300335142.jpeg (85.28 KiB) Viewed 3209 times

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And here is the road to my house, showing what kind of humid climate in which porous clay pots are useful.

FB_IMG_1551300563655.jpeg (29.63 KiB) Viewed 3209 times

I'm not a novice, and it's not a mistake to use clay pots in my climate. The plants are outdoors most of the year, but even when they're inside, humidity is way higher than it is in other places.

I think for most gardeners, using clay pots (especially the kind you describe which aren't as porous) will cause problems. But for people in humid climates with porous, fast-draining pots, these can be a life saver.

We tend to forget how different climate can really be in different parts of the world, but it's a huge factor in which pots will or won't work in the long run.

[nachtkrabb]

Hi Aloinopsis,
whatever the pots: your plants do look well & healthy. Very nice. I like them.

Another facet that should influence the choice of pots is your style of watering. I have taken some Crassula ovata of my godfather to my place for repotting. They really were too large for their mini clay pots. As he is used to clay pots, I gave the plants larger clay pots, only with really better soil. Well, I had those plants at my place for about two months.
I had to water them twice as often as my plants in plastic pots!

No, I don't want clay pots in my climate. That is too much work for me, not to mention that I was always worrying about root rot.
N.

[7george]

Yes George that was the thing most Brits could not understand about American cactus shows. The pots often seemed to be more important than the plant in it. Our old show philosophy was it was a Cactus and Other Succulent Show, therefore the plant was the important part ....

I think it's about the space these pots take, most of us don't go to these shows often. Clay pots take lot of space we have to consider for all seasons. You can fit much less plants in round pots so it's about your growing strategy and preferences.

[Cactifan800]

What problems would it cause if all the roots are around the clay pots rim?
I find that clay pots don't overheat compared to black plastic.
I reckon you could cook eggs on them lol.

[7george]

Roots stick to pot wall and get shed off at re-potting. Heating up is not a big problem but it depends on colour, sun exposure and so. Smaller pots dry up fast being porous if not glazed and then nothing cools it from sunshine.