Flower pots or 5 gallon bucket?

[MrMike656]

Now that I have one grow under my belt, I want to expand a little next season. I realize it's just inflation, but I recall those nursery pots that plants came in as being much cheaper.
When I ran short of pots on this grow, I grabbed a 5 gallon bucket from a major hardware retailer and drilled 6 or 7 holes in the bottom for drainage. It worked out ok - my question is
is there any disadvantage to doing that? I have more room in the bucket than the flower pots I was using....what IS the preferable pot to use for pot?

Mike

[Rwise]

I like cloth pots, lets the soil breath. I have used whatever I could get me paws on, drill some holes in the side of those pales.

[MrMike656]

I'm liking the idea of the cloth pots. Can those be lifted from time to time with it breaking? And is a plastic pan underneath sufficient for drainage?

[Rwise]

Yes one can lift the cloth pots many have handles, use a riser (gets them out of any run off) and catch pan under them. They can also be washed and reused, a friend drops them in the ground cloth pot and all (this will damage the cloth pot). "Smartpots" will not allow roots to grow trough them, the other brands will.

[shadycon]

Stay away from Jiffy Pots! They do not disintegrate fast enough , do not drain well and cause root problems. I had to remove them when I re-potted my plants!

[Rwise]

Ya the PH is way to low on those peat pots.

[BaccaRacca]

Something peculiar I learned while doing some re-reading on the GWE site is that fabric, smart pots, and other side-ventilated pots are great for promoting fast, early growth, but they ultimately hinder final plant size because they dry out more easily than hard-sided pots. If you want similar growth from from a cloth pot than from a hard-sided pot (including a construction bucket with holes drilled in the bottom for drainage) then you need to go a size up.

Interesting article, worth a re-read from time to time:

[Going2fast]

Please refer to all of my grows. Links to some posted below. Not a fan of fabric. The whole bs of letting the roots breathe is just that. They dry out too fast and it's near impossible to get even soil saturation due to them not holding water well. 5 gallon buckets are awesome and cheap especially for autos.

[bdeegan]

You are exactly who I thought of when I read the title. Dude grows bad ass autos in homer buckets! I grow in bags but have been considering about doing a side by side with bags and hard pots after thinking about your grows going2fast

[Bluey]

I've used both and I reckon I get better results from the big cheap black plastic pots than fabric. Haven't used fabric pots indoors and decided against it for my first auto grow, instead opting to chuck in lots of perlite but mostly in the top of the pot to help the autos get a bit of a better start.

Photos I don't even use perlite in the coco as I reckon your better off without it later in the grow.