Clay vs plastic

Max Withers maxwithers@gmail.com
Wed, 05 Oct 2011 21:27:26 PDT
I brought up the fabric pots a few months ago. The fabric is felt-like, and
made from recycled polyethylene. Some manufacturers make lighter colors, and
I wish I had had bought those. I am trying a variety of bulbs in them and
will report back when I have some results. Some preliminary observations:

1. They are, of course, very light.
2. They are a little shorter and wider than comparably sized plastic/clay
pots, for reasons of stability. I see this as a negative, but you may not.
3. They dry out faster than clay and heat up like plastic. Normally, this
wouldn't wouldn't be a problem for me, as I'm growing mediterranean bulbs in
a mediterranean climate, and the pots live in the garage for their summer
dormancy, but my new Tropaeolum tubers leafed out (or rather, stemmed out)
more than a month before our first rain, so I had to bring them outside --
and it took some effort to keep them watered. Eventually I put them on clay
saucers, which helped, but may be too much once the rains start in earnest.
One seems fine, the other suffered but survived.

They seem ideal for plunge beds, and useful anywhere weight is a
consideration.

Best,
Max Withers
Oakland CA



Message: 8
Date: Wed, 5 Oct 2011 19:16:32 +0100
From: David Pilling <pbs@pilling.demon.co.uk>
Subject: Re: [pbs] Clay vs plastic
To: Pacific Bulb Society <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org>
Message-ID: <Eu0UNBCA8JjOFwJw@pilling.demon.co.uk>
Content-Type: text/plain;charset=us-ascii;format=flowed

In message <DD3EC18B0E12417BA14B0C565FABDA54@RobinPC>, Robin Carrier
<robin@no1bird.com> writes
>I'm sorry.  I've looked it up and still can't  find what a "plunge bed"
is??
>thanks

Like a large area of sand that you sink your pots in to provide a
reservoir of moisture and temperature.

ISTR someone mentioned a few months back that as one can get black
plastic sleeves to grow plants in, there's a version made of woven
fibre, so a bit like plastic but a bit like clay because it breathes. I
looked at the web site at the time and great claims were being made for
it.

Does raise the question why are pots made black, instead of white which
would be a bit more temperature stable or even metalised - as some
decorative pots are.



--
David Pilling
email: david@pilling.demon.co.uk
  web: http://www.davidpilling.net/
 post: David Pilling, P.O. Box 22, Thornton-Cleveleys, Blackpool. FY5 1LR.
UK



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