Swiper Posted August 7, 2012 (edited) Hi All, I was wondering what types of pots work best for your cactus ? I am about to pot up a nice roseii#2 cutting into a large unglazed terracotta pot, I am tossing up whether to seal the pot or not. I use both unglazed terracotta and plastic, plastic seems to work the best in my conditions, although I have not had any problems with terracotta pots, the plants in plastic pots seem to grow faster. Cheers, Swiper. Edited August 7, 2012 by Swiper Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Evil Genius Posted August 7, 2012 Depends on what you want. Style or handability. I like plastic because it dries out fast and is not as heavy as clay pots. I have the impression plastic dries out faster than clay but maybe thats just my personal impression. And they are cheap and can easily be disposed of you get an infective pest in a pot. But they just dont look as good as clay pots... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stillman Posted August 7, 2012 (edited) I've used both unglazed and plastic if your soil medium is fast draining and the pot isn't too big for the plant both seem to work fine. Lately I have put all my nice stuff in unglazed terracotta and I must say I like the look as well as the quick dry out. Edited August 10, 2012 by Stillman Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shortly Posted August 7, 2012 I find plastic squat pots are fine with 95% of plants, but some plants that demand serious desert conditions definitely do better in unglazed terracotta pots in the humid subtropics. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Snowfella Posted August 7, 2012 Got just about everything in unglazed terracotta pots, anything in plastic is either just waiting for repotting or seedlings. Does have it's drawbacks though, one being the cost if you have a decent collection. I've got litterally hundreds of dollars invested in terracotta pots while I at the same time have an absolute buttloads of Hamiltons/Bunnings 5 and 7cm plastic pots laying about. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Swiper Posted August 7, 2012 Great comments guys, Thanks, very interesting to hear other growers' thoughts and practices. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dionysus Posted August 7, 2012 "which type of pot works for your cactus?" my cacti preffer a sativa dominated hybrid, grown out door 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GoOnThen Posted August 7, 2012 I have used all of the options in the poll as a few others have said the look of terracotta is nice but I have also found using plastic is a lot easer in a lot of cases. I also believe that terracotta does dry out faster and I would presume the roots would also stay cooler than in black plastic. I have just recently bought a heap of 85mm square plastic pots and have transferred most of my pere grafts and small cacti into them to save space and it has made a huge difference. I now plan to only use square pots for any plants that are going inside under lights or in the green house because of the space saving. Cheers Got 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ghosty Posted August 7, 2012 all my north/south america cactus collections are in unglazed clay pots. they do dry out faster than plastic i think. for me though, this means nothing. it's all just for looks. none of them are in ideal growing conditions at all on my front verandah. look bloody good though! i do look forward to the morning sun with a brazilian coffee and my ass planted between my sacred cacti. NICE. to me it's almost as nice as when i decide to light a big fire and sleep naked on the cold wintery grass next to the hot flames in my back yard in the heart of the city. how do i get away with it??? hehhe LOVE LIFE. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Halcyon Daze Posted August 7, 2012 They both pretty much ''work'' the same. For convenience I like to use plastic post for 'rooting out' my cuttings, HOWEVER, I always half-fill these plastic pots with broken terracotta (crocks) first ( This really aids drainage and root development. ). After 6 months - 1 year I repot these cuttings into a nice big beautiful funky pot for good, or I just plant into the ground. I love the look of nice pots, the bigger the better! Don't get skimpy on your permanent pots. Save up and go for something that will look stunning, cacti are just made for pots. I used to work at a pot shop and have been a container gardener for years. The golden rule is the bigger, the better! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kadakuda Posted August 7, 2012 i use thick, black plastic pots and never anything else anymore. need things that dry fast, withstand UV well, dont break when dropped, good amount of drainage holes and are cheap. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zelly Posted August 7, 2012 plastic all the way, from the smallest to the largest. anything terracotta or clay gets smashed & tossed in the garbage can. unfortunately black plastic absorbs heat, fortunately the black plastic doesnt degrade from suns uv radiation. plus spiders seem to thrive immediately under the rim of the bigger pots. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
whitewind Posted August 7, 2012 I use plastic simply because my collection is so large and the space so small; also I recycle as much as I can and when I do the council cleanups I find hundreds of free pots which I can't go past. Ultimately I am a lazy waterer so terracotta would probably dry out too quickly for me, but ultimately it is a more sustainable method of making pots and is far more beautiful. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Swiper Posted August 8, 2012 (edited) Thankyou all for your thoughts. I am going to plant the roseii in a nice big unglazed/unsealed terracotta pot. Edited August 8, 2012 by Swiper Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ErraneousHerbalist Posted August 8, 2012 I use whatever I have available mostly, heh back when I started out I was using old bottles and things as pots ^///^....but it was ugly as sin. So nowadays I use glazed terracotta and terracotta for most plants. But plastic pots for seedlings and plants that I don't like xD Share this post Link to post Share on other sites