For review and comment by the group:

Bonsai Pot Selection
Mechanics, Quality and Price
Some Random Thoughts on the purchase of Bonsai Pots

First and foremost Bonsai pot selection is a matter of art and design.
The size, shape, color, design etc., of the pot is an artistic decision.
But, this little essay is about the rest of it. In my experience, all in
Florida where pots freezing is not usually a factor and with a preference for
unglazed pottery, there is a wide range in pot quality based upon the
mechanics of the pot's manufacture.
Of course a Bonsai pot must have drainage holes and two are better than
one, because it makes wiring the tree in the pot easier. Larger pots should
have additional drainage holes and, at least, four smaller holes for tie down
wires.
First, the pot should sit flat. Put the pot on an even surface, does it
rock back and forth, because one foot is a little too high? Sometimes this can
be easily corrected by carefully removing a bit of clay from one foot.
Sometimes another pot from the same box and of the same design will be OK.
Second the bottom of the pot should be flat inside, or with a slight dip
toward the drain holes. A pot with a bowed or bulging center should be avoided
because it will not drain well. (A pot with a center bulge might be OK for a
species that isn't as fussy about drainage such as Ficus, especially if the
price is right.)
Likewise a pot with holes over the legs should be avoided for the same
reasons.
Look at the drain holes. Are their edges smooth or do they have ridges of
clay around them? Again this will affect drainage.
Look at the evenness of shape. Is the oval even or lopsided? Look at other
shapes the same way. Is the circular pot round? Are the sides even on a
rectangular or square pot?
Inside rims and lips that allow soil and roots to get under them make
repotting more difficult. Ideally the sides of Bonsai pot should taper out slightly
to make it easier to remove the tree from the pot.
A difficult quality to assess is the porosity of the clay. Plan terra cotta
flower pots tend to be very porous and allow fertilizer and other water borne
salts to leach to the outside of the pot resulting in a white, chalky reside on
the outside of the pot. Sometimes Bonsai pots will also be too porous with
the same result. I have purchased what I though looked like high fired, hard
pots only to be disappointed by the appearance of the salts on the surface after
only a few months. These deposits can sometimes be temporarily removed for
display but getting them out of etched or other outside pot surface designs can
be very difficult.
Porosity will also affect winter hardiness of the pot. If a pot holds
moisture, it will break when that moisture freezes.
Whether the inside finish of a pot is smooth or rough probably doesn't
matter.
All of these factors and more speak to the quality of the pot. The higher
quality pot will be more expensive. The better pot might be as much as four times
the price of a lesser quality pot.

Billy on the Florida Space Coast

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