Where to get growout pots & flats?

Bonsai Nut

Bonsai Nut

Nuttier than your average Nut
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I have a couple of pre-bonsai in large black plastic pots and I want to buy more. These are black plastic pots like you would find in your Home Depot or local nursery, but they are big (probably five gallon) and squat - about twice as wide as they are tall (approx 7" tall and 16" diameter). I have done numerous web searches for nursery pots I can't seem to find them. Anyone with a link?

(Here is a photo of the kind of pot I am looking for)

DSC_0017_sm.jpg


Likewise, I am looking for a good source for black plastic square flats (approx. 18" square) for propogating black pine. I am looking for the heavy-duty reusable black plastic, not the cheap stuff that falls apart after one use.
 
Chances are you aren't going to find them online, except from the largest wholesale nursery suppliers like Hummert, or OBC Northwest. If you are lucky enough to have a nursery supply store in your area, you can get them from them, but these places are few and far between. Ask your local nursery or growers where they get their pots and nursery materials. With luck they will also sell retail. If this doesn't work out, the larger retail nurseries (not Big Box Stores, heavens forbid) will often be happy to order them for you if you order in case quantities. This usually isn't too bad, maybe 25 pots at a time, smaller amounts for larger pots. The pots you are talking about are called 'shorts' or 'squats'. Five, seven and ten gallon shorts are very nice for bonsai training pots.

Jason and Randy at Oregon Bonsai get square squat mesh bottom pots for their plants. These are really cool, and I am on the trail of them now down here. They are made by Anderson Plastic Die Company, in Portland I believe. Check our blog for pictures of them in the Oregon Road Trip Post photo albums. Randy says they are available from OBC Northwest, which do have a crappy website, you will probably have to call them to order. You can also get other 'shorts' from them. But again, most likely you will have to order by the case.

Brent
EvergreenGardenworks.com
see our blog at http://BonsaiNurseryman.typepad.com
 
Thanks for the info Brent. George (wahoo172) and I were discussing these type pots a while ago but I think we gave up trying to find them. We have sources for bulb pans, and I use them but have some issues with them. They are kind of flimsy and have the drain holes on the bottom. I detest drain holes on the bottom unless a pot has feet to elevate it for proper drainage. Another downside to bulb pans is the size as the maximum I can find is 12". That's good for smaller stuff and is fine if you step up from 8" to 10" to 12" but then where?

I did a quick search on eBay (yes, it sucks but sometimes you find what you need) and found some here :
http://home.search.ebay.com/squat-pot_Home-Garden_W0QQcatrefZC12QQfromZR8QQsacatZ11700QQsubmitsearchZSearch. If the link does not work just search for "squat pots" under home and garden. 4 gallon pots, 25 of them (used) for $25 including free shipping. I bet that is close to the retail price for them new. Those are too small for me as I need to move some stock up from 12" bulb pans.

If someone needed some but not a case I would be happy to split the cost. I have a UPS account so you could have them shipped to you, split the order and re-box and use my account to ship on to me. Just a thought.

A side note. Why are almost all nursery pots black? In Florida in the middle of summer I would love a lighter color. No need to bake the roots more than needed with the black pots.
 
Thanks for all the help guys - I am looking for "super squat" sizes. The link that Graydon posted is for a standard "squat" pot which is about half way between a standard nursery pot and what I am seeking. I am specifically looking for pots that are more than 2x as wide as they are tall (like in the photo).

By the way - I am interested in the new heavy duty net pots typically used in hydroponics. I wonder how these would do with black pines?

AmericanHydroLargeNet.jpg
 
Graydon

They are black for UV resistance. White or light colored pots won't last nearly as long. The polymers are carbon filled, and even though they heat up much more than white pots, it is the light penetration that matters for plastics. I have started doubling pots in direct sunlight. For example, I put my one gallon black pines in an empty 2 gallon plastic pot. This keeps the one gallon pot from receiving direct sunlight, that is all that matters. A bonus for this is that I stake the 2 gallon pots to the ground, thus I can prevent blowover and still be able to easily lift the one gallon pots off the ground. When you live in a wind tunnel like I do, you learn to be creative.

Brent
EvergreenGardenworks.com
see our blog at http://BonsaiNurseryman.typepad.com
 
BonsaiNut said:
I am looking for "super squat" sizes.

By the way - I am interested in the new heavy duty net pots typically used in hydroponics. I wonder how these would do with black pines?
Click to expand...

Super squat - got it. They have to be somewhere. Whoever finds a good supplier first wins a prize of... ?

I use the square mesh baskets on JBP with great results. I may have a couple dozen or so in use now. It's an easier way of doing the colander routine. Cost is a little cheaper than the colanders as there is no freight, my source is Lowes. The one downside is the size (back to the squat theory). They are as tall as they are wide. Too much soil and not enough spread. I plant larger stock in them for a couple of years and then have to pull them to root-prune. Great for root development as the ones I have pulled have a mass of fine feeder roots that radiate outward well. Seem to be air pruned just as in the book.

I just planted about 25 JBP in the 8" colanders. I like the size and shape of them. They are also a heavier plastic than all of the mesh baskets I have seen. Do you have a source for the colanders?

What I really want is a super squat mesh container...
 
Brent said:
Graydon

They are black for UV resistance. White or light colored pots won't last nearly as long. The polymers are carbon filled, and even though they heat up much more than white pots, it is the light penetration that matters for plastics. I have started doubling pots in direct sunlight. For example, I put my one gallon black pines in an empty 2 gallon plastic pot. This keeps the one gallon pot from receiving direct sunlight, that is all that matters. A bonus for this is that I stake the 2 gallon pots to the ground, thus I can prevent blowover and still be able to easily lift the one gallon pots off the ground. When you live in a wind tunnel like I do, you learn to be creative.

Brent
EvergreenGardenworks.com
see our blog at http://BonsaiNurseryman.typepad.com
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. Now I know and also have a good way to keep the root zone cooler in summer, double pots are a great idea.
 
I have often seen plastic concrete mixing bins used as grow pots, most often on bald cypress, but you can cut out drain holes in them for pine use.
 
I just bought some Hormodin 3 from these guys and they sent me a BIG nursery supply catalog. They have a decent selection of nursery pots & flats - including some of the squats we have been talking about. They sell direct as well as wholesale, and pot quantities from a bundle to several pallets. My first order with them went well so check out B&T Grower Supply, Inc.
 
I have used cheap pond liners, and cement (plaster) mixing tubs in place of squat pots. They run $5 to $15 depending on size, and require holes to be drilled for drainage, but they can be found at Home Depot, Lowes, Ace Hardware, etc.

Brian
 
You know, some of those pots look an awful lot like the feed pans I use for the goats. A tad bit pricey for pots, but they are made to last forever and withstand animals kicking them around. Check your local feed store or farm supply....
Also, oil drain pans are short but wide. Last a couple of years (at least the ones in the direct sun I also use as animal pans do) and not expensive. I get mine at auto parts supply stores..... Would be easy to drill holes in em!
 
bonsai barry said:
If you're looking for pond baskets, I use the pet place
http://www.thatpetplace.com/
Click to expand...


Thanks Barry - I forgot about these guys. I actually use the large square baskets for my water lilies. The smaller ones would be perfect for my new pines. I just ordered 125 of them :) Now if only you lived closer so you could help me pot up 125 pine trees :)
 
BonsaiNut said:
Now if only you lived closer so you could help me pot up 125 pine trees :)
Click to expand...

I live pretty close to you nut (San Diego) ;) . Seriously, if you find yourself needing an extra pair of hands for something, I'm sure we could find a time that I could help.

Cheers
Brian
 
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