Fabric pots opinion?

[Suebelle]

Since I am entirely new to fruit trees I am just reading all possible information about the subject. Idea of fabric pots looks very interesting and I am tempted to try it. But I am little scared that in hot San Jose, CA summers they can get dry faster than traditional kinds of pots.
Any opinions or experience?

[KarenRei]

I've only got one, and it's indoors in a humidity tent, so it may not be the best analogy to your situation.  But I've been impressed enough that I plan to order a lot more. 

A caution that I've seen, however, is that you shouldn't put plants that require constantly moist soil in air pots (at least not small ones), because they do dry out the soil faster (mine is a guanabana).  But in terms of plant health, it seems to just love it.  Even the soil stays loose and airy.  And they're not very expensive.

I definitely recommend doing a trial run with some 

[fyliu]

What makes you want to use fabric pots instead of the regular nursery pots in the first place? I mean it can help some while harming other plants.

Try it with cheap stuff like tomato and tree seedlings first. Tomato has shallow roots and trees have taproots. It depends on what you want to grow in it in the end.

It's great to use if you're the type of person that tends to overwater your plants.

[Suebelle]

I read that it stops roots to “circle”, keeps plants better aerated and cooler in summer/ warmer in winter and in general plants are more healthy than in traditional pots.
I tend to use plastic pots, they are lightweight and one can create more or bigger holes.
But I think about trying fabric ones at least on veggies and small trees which I have surplus(lemon, wisteria) to test it first. I am almost entirely without practical knowledge in this area so I read and ask and am really grateful for replies. I kinda fell in love with my new tree-babies and do not want to hurt them.

[fyliu]

Suebelle, I just read your introduction. That answers a lot of my questions. Welcome to the forum!

I have a friend that grows some things in large fabric pots. I think they're 20 gallon size. She gets dollies from Harbor Freight or somewhere to roll them around the concrete part of her yard. It lets her figure out which one likes which location.

Anyway, she has these plants in them and ones I don't remember:
- gold nugget mandarin, kumquat, kinnow mandarin
- avocado
- blackberry
- goji berry

I have a miracle fruit in a similar root-pruning pot. It's called rootmaker 2.


Since you're in San Jose, you might want to attend some Santa Clara CRFG meetings to meet other local growers. They will know your local climate better than most people here. Maybe you will find someone close to you that you can visit and get good ideas from. https://scvcrfg.wordpress.com/

[Suebelle]

Oh thank you. I am looking forward for their next meeting.

And yes, maybe one plus of fabric pots is to test possibilities before making final decision.

[FruitFreak]

I have used hundreds of fabric pots for outdoor nursery applications and they performed amazing.  The trees surely appreciated the switch from conventional plastic nursery pots.  In this era, simple/cheap above ground irrigation from a hose bib with tubing and low flow emitters is a no brainer.  Black plastic pots definitely dried out much faster than any fabric pots with greater detriment to the roots.  I used tan colored gro pro's from 15-65 gallon and I would say they are best bet if exposed to direct sun.

[roblack]

fabric pots are great for growing, but they don't look as good as other pots, which usually doesn't matter anyway. Need to be filled properly, can't partially fill them like a solid pot or they fold in.

growing katuk, ginger, turmeric, galangal, and purple potatoes in them, along with a few others, and they are all doing fine.

haven't noticed any root bound plants. roots will sometimes grow through the bottom, but they are super thin and the pots are easily moved, ripping them away with little resistance. I've had roots grow through plastic root pruning pots as well, but they tend to be larger in diameter.

[FruitFreak]

fabric pots are great for growing, but they don't look as good as other pots, which usually doesn't matter anyway. Need to be filled properly, can't partially fill them like a solid pot or they fold in.

As you can tell from other threads I'm a big advocate of fabric pots after seeing actual results.  One thing I have learned is its always better to go ahead and utilize the entire pot rather than fill one partially.  This prevents you from having to do double work on a single pot and its less stressful for the tree.  As far as fabric pots are concerned, all fabric pots are not equal.  material and construction varies considerably between different manufacturers/models.  If you go with the GroPro tan "premium" pots they do not fold-in.  Once again you get what you pay for.

[Mark in Texas]

I have used hundreds of fabric pots for outdoor nursery applications and they performed amazing.  The trees surely appreciated the switch from conventional plastic nursery pots.  In this era, simple/cheap above ground irrigation from a hose bib with tubing and low flow emitters is a no brainer.  Black plastic pots definitely dried out much faster than any fabric pots with greater detriment to the roots.  I used tan colored gro pro's from 15-65 gallon and I would say they are best bet if exposed to direct sun.

Employee at RootMaker likes their white fabric pots the best for handling the hot summer Alabama heat. Says they dry out less and are cooler at the root system.

I do RootBuilder pots, like the one the recovering Reed is in which I expanded to 100 gallon.

http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?topic=7511.125

Have also used copper hydroxide paints with excellent results.

[Mark in Texas]

fabric pots are great for growing, but they don't look as good as other pots, which usually doesn't matter anyway.

Drop it within a decorative pot.

[Daintree]

I have one fabric pot, and the rest plastic.

Pros to the fabric pot -
My strawberry guava seems happy
It was way cheaper than the plastic pots

Con -
It needs watering more often.  If I have ALL fabric pots, it wouldn't be an issue, but as of right now, I have to water it by itself, more frequently.

So I would say if you are going fabric, do ALL of them.  Even though I am happy with this one, I will be switching back to plastic just for the ease of not having to water this one more frequently.

Carolyn

[waxy]

I've used them and wasn't a big fan.

Pros
- Easy to store
- Great for air pruning
- Pack into tight spaces
- Encourages quicker root growth

Cons
- Twice the amount of saturation is needed
- Dries up much quicker since it vented all around
- Cannot stand on it
- Cannot stack
- Mold issues
- Clogged

If you live in drier areas and wind (San Jose), I would try it out first before you throw all your eggs in the same basket.

[FruitFreak]

I've used them and wasn't a big fan.

Pros
- Easy to store
- Great for air pruning
- Pack into tight spaces
- Encourages quicker root growth

Cons
- Twice the amount of saturation is needed
- Dries up much quicker since it vented all around
- Cannot stand on it
- Cannot stack
- Mold issues
- Clogged

If you live in drier areas and wind (San Jose), I would try it out first before you throw all your eggs in the same basket.

Those problems would arise from using the wrong medium/mix and not irrigating consistently/enough?  Why would you ever stand on your pots?  I knew a woman in Coral Springs who had been fruiting mango trees in 30gallon fabric pots for 6yrs.  She had a couple dozen scattered around the backyard and only watered them every 2-3 days with a hose and they looked fantastic.  If the wrong mix is used with any type of container problems can occur. 

Other advantages:

• Can be sterilized and washed easily
• Can be folded and stored neatly in totes for later use
• Depending on the quality of plastic, fabric can last much longer
• Not only quicker root growth but much, much, healthier root mass

[waxy]

I stand on them to prune, pick fruit or pollenate and sometimes yell at birds.
Aside from that I stack trays of veggies and seedlings below them.

They're also much easier to carry, also move around with a dolly compared to fabric.
I can see how these could be useful in a more adequate climate.

But they're definitely not easy to clean once soil has been sitting in there.
Giving an honest opinion from someone in the same zone, but to each their own.

[Mark in Texas]

There is a much better solution if you want a rigid pot and need a bottom too.  Order a roll of RootBuilder (wholesale if you can, retail is expensive) and order a Root Trapper disc 2" larger than the diameter of the pot.  Gray side up, white side down.  Drop the Rootbuilder pot onto the disc, backfill, plant.  If done early enough in the season the roots will be entrapped by the disc forming a permanent bottom so that the pot can be moved if need be.

All roots, side and bottom, will be tip pruned giving you the very fibrous, efficient root system you want.

[Nate186]

I know, it's an old topic, I've used fabric pots for veggies for two years, and they are fine. My concern is using them long term for a 65 gal mango. Has anyone used the same pot for a long time?

[nullzero]

They start to become brittle after 5 years of constant sun due to UV and elements.

By that time you should be reporting anyway which is an easy process of just laying the fabric container on its side and using a box cutter to remove the old fabric container. I do this ontop of a tarp to catch the clumps of soil.

[zwanif]

i use grow bags and for me its the best thing for your trees it also help them live longer help them develop better root systems

[Nate186]

5 years is a long time, that's good enough for me.  I like fabric pots but was wondering about longevity. Thanks.

[jacobrts]

I got some eight year old trees that had been grown in fabric pots (orange, lime, avocado, surinam cherry, miracle berry).
They were mostly in 20 to 25-gallon size pots at that point.  Although they had been neglected the previous couple years and showed some signs of stunted growth, I was surprised to see how well they were doing.  Definitely didn't see any roots circling around the bottom. 
There is a lot of rain here and seems to provide a lot of airflow so plants don't drown. 

Handles on the larger (10gal+) fabric pots are useless.