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#1
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Punishingly Pricey Plant Pots
I thought I'd try growing bush tomatoes in various ways to see what
works best - and one idea was to use pots on the patio. The seed packet advises 12" pots but when I went into the local garden centre I was appalled at the price - about six quid for a pot - and over two quid for a corresponding saucer! This seems totally crazy! Is there any reason for such high prices? Are there good alternatives? Wilco wastebins with holes drilled in the bottom? Are saucers needed? -- Chris |
#2
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In article ], Chris ]
writes I thought I'd try growing bush tomatoes in various ways to see what works best - and one idea was to use pots on the patio. The seed packet advises 12" pots but when I went into the local garden centre I was appalled at the price - about six quid for a pot - and over two quid for a corresponding saucer! This seems totally crazy! Is there any reason for such high prices? Are there good alternatives? Wilco wastebins with holes drilled in the bottom? Yes, that'd be fine. Anything similar that you can get hold of cheap or free. Needs to be strong enough not to split if you try to move it when full of soil. Are saucers needed? Not if your watering regime is so good that the soil is always moist ;-) That is unachievable, and trying to re-wet dry soil when anything more than an egg-cup full of water runs straight through is well nigh impossible if you don't have some sort of saucer or tray underneath. Don't be tempted to omit drainage holes altogether - there will come a time when the plants are waterlogged and that will damage the roots. A dodge that seems to work with other plants (not tried it on tomatoes but don't see why it shouldn't work) is to drill the drainage holes in the sides, about 2 inches up. That way, you can have a reservoir at the bottom, while still maintaining drainage. I don't bother, but you might want to fill the bottom couple of inches with stones or broken pots instead of soil. -- Kay "Do not insult the crocodile until you have crossed the river" |
#3
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In article , Kay writes: | | Are saucers needed? | | Not if your watering regime is so good that the soil is always moist ;-) | That is unachievable, and trying to re-wet dry soil when anything more | than an egg-cup full of water runs straight through is well nigh | impossible if you don't have some sort of saucer or tray underneath. Eh? I just push the soil down the sides to stop the main streams, cover the soil with an inch of water and wait. It then dampens the soil, and the next round will absorb better. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
#4
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In article , Nick Maclaren
writes In article , Kay writes: | | Are saucers needed? | | Not if your watering regime is so good that the soil is always moist ;-) | That is unachievable, and trying to re-wet dry soil when anything more | than an egg-cup full of water runs straight through is well nigh | impossible if you don't have some sort of saucer or tray underneath. Eh? I just push the soil down the sides to stop the main streams, cover the soil with an inch of water and wait. It then dampens the soil, and the next round will absorb better. Maybe it doesn't work with soilless composts. Or maybe I'm even more remiss about watering than you are ;-) -- Kay "Do not insult the crocodile until you have crossed the river" |
#5
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In article , Kay writes: | | | | Are saucers needed? | | | | Not if your watering regime is so good that the soil is always moist ;-) | | That is unachievable, and trying to re-wet dry soil when anything more | | than an egg-cup full of water runs straight through is well nigh | | impossible if you don't have some sort of saucer or tray underneath. | | Eh? I just push the soil down the sides to stop the main streams, | cover the soil with an inch of water and wait. It then dampens | the soil, and the next round will absorb better. | | Maybe it doesn't work with soilless composts. Or maybe I'm even more | remiss about watering than you are ;-) Ah. I don't use soilless for my drought-resistant pot plants, or most of the others, actually. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
#6
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In article , Kay
writes In article ], Chris ] writes Are saucers needed? Not if your watering regime is so good that the soil is always moist ;-) That is unachievable, and trying to re-wet dry soil when anything more than an egg-cup full of water runs straight through is well nigh impossible if you don't have some sort of saucer or tray underneath. What are the saucers actually for? Do you water the pots by adding water to the saucer? Or do you water the top of the pot? -- Chris |
#7
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In article ], Chris ]
writes In article , Kay writes In article ], Chris ] writes Are saucers needed? Not if your watering regime is so good that the soil is always moist ;-) That is unachievable, and trying to re-wet dry soil when anything more than an egg-cup full of water runs straight through is well nigh impossible if you don't have some sort of saucer or tray underneath. What are the saucers actually for? Do you water the pots by adding water to the saucer? Or do you water the top of the pot? With a big pot like that, I water the top of the pot. The saucer is to catch any water that runs straight through, so that the soil will soak it up slowly over the next couple of hours. Otherwise I'd have to keep going back to water a teacup at a time. -- Kay "Do not insult the crocodile until you have crossed the river" |
#8
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On Wed, 6 Apr 2005 08:02:05 +0100, Chris ] wrote:
I thought I'd try growing bush tomatoes in various ways to see what works best - and one idea was to use pots on the patio. The seed packet advises 12" pots but when I went into the local garden centre I was appalled at the price - about six quid for a pot - and over two quid for a corresponding saucer! This seems totally crazy! Is there any reason for such high prices? Check how many staff the garden centre has. Baytree must employ just about everyone in Lincs. They are everywhere! Something has to pay the wages. MM |
#9
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Hi
Have a look at www.thegardensuperstore.co.uk as they have loads of pots and are very reasonably priced. I had a quick look and they have 15 litre heavy duty container pots with a 30cm diameter across the top, 25cm at the base and they cost £1.76 each. Hope this helps Regards Roger "Chris" ] wrote in message ]... I thought I'd try growing bush tomatoes in various ways to see what works best - and one idea was to use pots on the patio. The seed packet advises 12" pots but when I went into the local garden centre I was appalled at the price - about six quid for a pot - and over two quid for a corresponding saucer! This seems totally crazy! Is there any reason for such high prices? Are there good alternatives? Wilco wastebins with holes drilled in the bottom? Are saucers needed? -- Chris |
#10
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In article , Roger Hembury
writes Have a look at www.thegardensuperstore.co.uk as they have loads of pots and are very reasonably priced. I had a quick look and they have 15 litre heavy duty container pots with a 30cm diameter across the top, 25cm at the base and they cost £1.76 each. True. Thanks. Also - there seems to be an inordinate difference between the prices for 10" and12" pots. Would 10" be big enough for bush tomatoes? -- Chris |
#11
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Chris ] wrote in message
True. Thanks. Also - there seems to be an inordinate difference between the prices for 10" and12" pots. Would 10" be big enough for bush tomatoes? I guess, by the price, you are looking at terracotta long toms? They are nice looking but not really the best thing for toms as the water can evaporate out of the porous sides as well as the top. So opting for them is definately taking looks over substance. With tomatoes the bigger the better. The thing with tomatoes is that they seem to grow to fill whatever space you give them - the more more soil = root space = more water & more food = more tomatoes! But bush varieties are smaller so if you want to try a 10" then *maybe* give it a go. Personally i think you might be wasting your money - those 2" in diameter work out to be quite a bit of cubic space. sarah |
#12
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In article , sahara
writes Chris ] wrote in message True. Thanks. Also - there seems to be an inordinate difference between the prices for 10" and12" pots. Would 10" be big enough for bush tomatoes? I guess, by the price, you are looking at terracotta long toms? They are nice looking but not really the best thing for toms as the water can evaporate out of the porous sides as well as the top. So opting for them is definately taking looks over substance. With tomatoes the bigger the better. The thing with tomatoes is that they seem to grow to fill whatever space you give them - the more more soil = root space = more water & more food = more tomatoes! But bush varieties are smaller so if you want to try a 10" then *maybe* give it a go. Personally i think you might be wasting your money - those 2" in diameter work out to be quite a bit of cubic space. Good point, Sarah Ratio of twelve cubed to ten cubed is 1728 : 1000 and so that means almost twice the volume! -- Chris |
#13
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On Wed, 6 Apr 2005 08:02:05 +0100, Chris ] wrote:
~I thought I'd try growing bush tomatoes in various ways to see what ~works best - and one idea was to use pots on the patio. ~ ~The seed packet advises 12" pots but when I went into the local garden ~centre I was appalled at the price - about six quid for a pot - and over ~two quid for a corresponding saucer! ~ ~This seems totally crazy! ~Is there any reason for such high prices? They will charge whatever the market will bear: if folk are daft enough to pay that much then... ~Are there good alternatives? Well I'm growing spuds in a 15" pot with two handles on either side and decently sized drainage holes, so I can haul it about the garden when I need to. The pot cost me 2.99. I noticed identical ones in use at Kew the other Friday. I shall probably pop a tom in it once the Rockets are gone (they've been going 3 weeks and are ready in 10 so should be clear by the end of May, just in time). They're not the prettiest - I suspect that's the real reason you find 6 quid 12" pots. For saucers I now use sawn off watercooler bottle bases (I use the tops as bell cloches) salvaged from the local delivery depot. They were happy to recycle them in my direction as against the plastic melters' ~Wilco wastebins with holes drilled in the bottom? ~Are saucers needed? for tomatoes I'd say yes, though I grow mine in hanging baskets which often dry out and still give me nice crops. -- jane Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone, you may still exist but you have ceased to live. Mark Twain Please remove onmaps from replies, thanks! |
#14
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In article ], Chris ]
writes I thought I'd try growing bush tomatoes in various ways to see what works best - and one idea was to use pots on the patio. The seed packet advises 12" pots but when I went into the local garden centre I was appalled at the price - about six quid for a pot - and over two quid for a corresponding saucer! 92p in Tesco, 100p in Poundland, something similar in Wilkinsons; but a lot of these pots have rather narrow bases, which might be a problem. This seems totally crazy! Is there any reason for such high prices? Are there good alternatives? Wilco wastebins with holes drilled in the bottom? Are saucers needed? -- Stewart Robert Hinsley |
#15
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In article ], ] says...
I thought I'd try growing bush tomatoes in various ways to see what works best - and one idea was to use pots on the patio. The seed packet advises 12" pots but when I went into the local garden centre I was appalled at the price - about six quid for a pot - and over two quid for a corresponding saucer! This seems totally crazy! Is there any reason for such high prices? Are there good alternatives? Wilco wastebins with holes drilled in the bottom? Are saucers needed? I use builders buckets from B&Q, about a quid apiece. Not very pretty but my tomatoes grow anyway. Easy enough to drill holes in them and they are quite tough. |
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