I have some plants that I grew from seeds that are starting to outgrow their containers. I was going to replant them in bigger pots, but then I wondered if they wouldn't maybe be better off in the ground? Here is the trade off: Where I keep them only gets 5 hours of direct sun a day, but since they're in pots I'm able to move them around and give them a couple of extra hours. Would they be better off in the ground or potted and in the sun?
how big areyour pots? more sun is better, but in ground is better than pots. you must quantify the difference
one big deciding factor between pots and ground is the required maintenance, pots will normally require more work watering then ground planted. Plus if you plan on keeping them in pots the whole time and moving them around to get sun, they're gonna get to be pretty heavy as you get bigger plants/pots. If they would only get 5hrs if ground planted then it sounds like you need to use pots and move them. Just remember that it's a lot harder to move a 5ft plant then a 1ft plant
Pots all day long for one simple reason, the soil in the pots is exactly the consistancy and nutrient profile (I would hope) you are looking for, dirt in the ground on the other hand is the dirt in the ground. The extra sun is just a bonus.
[quote name='"Gnomepunter"']Pots all day long for one simple reason, the soil in the pots is exactly the consistancy and nutrient profile (I would hope) you are looking for, dirt in the ground on the other hand is the dirt in the ground. The extra sun is just a bonus.[/quote] Well most people that use holes in the ground still Fill it with the dirt that they want so it would be the same as pots. What kind of pots do u have. Look into maybe 5 gal smart pots. They work awesome and some have handles that make it easier to move.
hmm, sounds like re-pot the plants for now and maybe put them in the ground when they start to be too much of a pain in the ass to lug around? Also, if they go from getting extra sun while I'm moving them around in pots to 5 hours sun in the ground, will that help spur them on to flower? I mean, if they're outside they can presumably tell how long the days are even if they're not getting direct sun the entire time.
even if they're not getting direct sun all the time they're still getting light . they'll start to flower when the dark cycle starts to increase sometime in july generally. also depends on the plant's genetics
I grow in pots because I wanted control over my grow medium. Yes you can dig a hole and plant in the ground. But when do you do the plants get super huge and outgrow your hole and start rooting into the native soil around it? I have tons of clay in my soil and have read it is not good for roots....so I just stick to 15 gallon pots. Oh and the bonus is the pots, not the sun. There is no grow light that can mimic the suns power. Sunlight is the best.
You can control the medium in ground too. I have about 4 gallons of my own soil mix, and I have a nice organic bagged potting soil to grow in. The deal with clay, it holds wayyyy too much water. It can act like a clay bowl and keep water from draining. To beat clay soil, you just dig a smaller hole (1x1-1x2 feet deep) and that will prevent a ton of water from just hanging out in your root ball, as the clay itself will give way to the strong roots. I might go down another few inches, then add drainage rocks to the bottom of the hole and as mulch. I have clay-ish soil, but when I dug my holes I found some small wild blackberries near by, so I figure thats a good sign.
clay soils can be ammended with gypsum, and mulches. they are actually prefered over sandy soils in commercial agriculture. just takes work.