Experience with Smart Pots? Can you make them?

lakelady · November 15, 2011

There's a felt factory near here, probably the last factory I even know of in my area. I always thought it was for commercial sales, and the other day my garden c enter had started decorating for Christmas with felt they purchased from there.

So, it got me wondering. How good ARE smart pots? They look like felt to me. Has anyone tried making them? Probably not very cost effective unless you can get materials pretty cheap, which I might, not sure yet.

**mdvpc** · November 15, 2011

Smart pots are great. I am using the roots version. Look at them in my 2011 greenhouse dwarves thread.

lakelady · November 16, 2011

That is one of the reasons I decided to start this thread Michael!

I acually bought a product I didn't use this year which is similar to a smart pot and it feels like a felt material, but with some polyester or some other substance in it. Probably the best thing would be to go to the felt factory and see what they have . The stuff my garden center used to make small boxes was pretty stiff, which would be good, but from what I've read, they do soften up a lot during the season with use.

I was thinking of a new area in my yard that has grass, and I'm pretty sure there is a lot of rock below it (the edge of the level has boulders, which I'm quite certain extend under the grass). To make life easier, I'd rather not have to try and dig up a new garden, and building a raised bed would even be a challenge because it's not straight, it's a curved edge. I'll take pics as it's hard to explain. So, the thought of smart pots over there with weed fabric covering and smothering the grass sounds appealing to me.

Kinda hard for me to get a guy to do the hard work and my knowledge of building things is pretty limited. I need simple and easy

**mdvpc** · November 16, 2011

Please keep us updated on your project.

fortyonenorth · November 16, 2011

I used 7-gal "smart" pots this year for peppers and a few tomatoes. I would say the fabric falls somewhere between felt and canvas in terms of texture. The ones I bought were about $6 each. At that cost, I don't see a great benefit versus traditional clay or plastic pots. The plants I had in clay (growing side by side with the bags) all performed better. The "smart" pots have an odd way of holding on to moisture--even with my very well-draining container mix--whereas the clay breathes and tends to dry out between waterings in a more natural way. In terms of durability, I had a few "smart" pots tear at the end of season during clean-up. This is after a single season of use. They are durable, but I wouldn't expect them to last more than three years. We'll see. They seem like they would store well, but once they get all saturated with soil and algae, they are pretty stiff and unwieldy. I think I still prefer the stacking ability of plastic or clay.

With all that said, Greenhousemegastore is listing some less expensive pots which might make more sense economically:
http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/p...egradable-pots
http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/p...egradable-pots

For the grey ones, they are selling a pack of five 5-gal pots for $6 or a pack of five 7-gal pots for $8. That's pretty cheap IMO. I'm not a seamstress (seamster?

) but I'm thinking your materials would cost more than that - not to mention time and effort.

maf · November 16, 2011

I have made similar containers from landscape fabric with stapled seams, no sewing needed. Cheap and easy to make, do the job well.

lakelady · November 18, 2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by fortyonenorth

I used 7-gal "smart" pots this year for peppers and a few tomatoes. I would say the fabric falls somewhere between felt and canvas in terms of texture. The ones I bought were about $6 each. At that cost, I don't see a great benefit versus traditional clay or plastic pots. The plants I had in clay (growing side by side with the bags) all performed better. The "smart" pots have an odd way of holding on to moisture--even with my very well-draining container mix--whereas the clay breathes and tends to dry out between waterings in a more natural way. In terms of durability, I had a few "smart" pots tear at the end of season during clean-up. This is after a single season of use. They are durable, but I wouldn't expect them to last more than three years. We'll see. They seem like they would store well, but once they get all saturated with soil and algae, they are pretty stiff and unwieldy. I think I still prefer the stacking ability of plastic or clay.

With all that said, Greenhousemegastore is listing some less expensive pots which might make more sense economically:
http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/p...egradable-pots
http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/p...egradable-pots

For the grey ones, they are selling a pack of five 5-gal pots for $6 or a pack of five 7-gal pots for $8. That's pretty cheap IMO. I'm not a seamstress (seamster?

) but I'm thinking your materials would cost more than that - not to mention time and effort.

Hmm..you could be right. Certainly don't have time to do it, but I thought I could even ask my mom to keep her busy (lol).... Would have to be durable enough to lift or move around with out ripping too.

Landscape fabric? Ah, that's an idea too. I think I saw that idea someplace inside of milk crates as frames.

So this tells me there are so many different things we don't normally use for containers that really could work. I'll have to give some thought to it.

thanks!

dice · November 20, 2011

Dollar Store laundry basket with a garbage bag in it works pretty well.
The garbage bag needs some holes around the bottom on the inside
for drainage. I find that they are big enough and the baskets small
enough that one can drape the bag over the outside and not need to
protect it from the summer sun, because there is an air gap between
the part of the bag on the inside and the part that hangs over on the
outside. Holds about the same volume of container mix as a 5-gallon
paint bucket (maybe a little more because of the shape).

And of course eminently affordable, with built in handles for moving
them.

LuvsToPlant · December 4, 2011

I think the garbage bag method defeats the purpose of the "smart pot" idea.

lakelady ... yes you can make them out of a good landscape fabric.
The purpose of smart pots is for aeration...It is a 'air-prune" container.
Once the roots hits the sides of the pots it produces more fibirous roots.

They are designed really to grow for years in the same pot...
If needed...the best way to clean fabric containers...is to allow to dry out
then brush off any extra dirt.
If extra cleaning is felt needed...soak and wash in Oxyclean.

bughunter99 · January 20, 2012

You can sew them up in about 15 minutes out of landscaping fabric for a fraction of the price and at any size you like. I like to grow potatoes in them.

November 15, 2011	#1
lakelady Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: northern NJ zone 6b Posts: 1,862	Experience with Smart Pots? Can you make them? There's a felt factory near here, probably the last factory I even know of in my area. I always thought it was for commercial sales, and the other day my garden c enter had started decorating for Christmas with felt they purchased from there. So, it got me wondering. How good ARE smart pots? They look like felt to me. Has anyone tried making them? Probably not very cost effective unless you can get materials pretty cheap, which I might, not sure yet. __________________ Antoniette

November 15, 2011	#2
mdvpc Tomatoville® Moderator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 4,386	Smart pots are great. I am using the roots version. Look at them in my 2011 greenhouse dwarves thread. __________________ Michael

November 16, 2011	#3
lakelady Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: northern NJ zone 6b Posts: 1,862	That is one of the reasons I decided to start this thread Michael! I acually bought a product I didn't use this year which is similar to a smart pot and it feels like a felt material, but with some polyester or some other substance in it. Probably the best thing would be to go to the felt factory and see what they have . The stuff my garden center used to make small boxes was pretty stiff, which would be good, but from what I've read, they do soften up a lot during the season with use. I was thinking of a new area in my yard that has grass, and I'm pretty sure there is a lot of rock below it (the edge of the level has boulders, which I'm quite certain extend under the grass). To make life easier, I'd rather not have to try and dig up a new garden, and building a raised bed would even be a challenge because it's not straight, it's a curved edge. I'll take pics as it's hard to explain. So, the thought of smart pots over there with weed fabric covering and smothering the grass sounds appealing to me. Kinda hard for me to get a guy to do the hard work and my knowledge of building things is pretty limited. I need simple and easy __________________ Antoniette

November 16, 2011	#4
mdvpc Tomatoville® Moderator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 4,386	Please keep us updated on your project. __________________ Michael

November 20, 2011	#8
dice Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: PNW Posts: 4,743	Dollar Store laundry basket with a garbage bag in it works pretty well. The garbage bag needs some holes around the bottom on the inside for drainage. I find that they are big enough and the baskets small enough that one can drape the bag over the outside and not need to protect it from the summer sun, because there is an air gap between the part of the bag on the inside and the part that hangs over on the outside. Holds about the same volume of container mix as a 5-gallon paint bucket (maybe a little more because of the shape). And of course eminently affordable, with built in handles for moving them. __________________ -- alias Last edited by dice; December 4, 2011 at 12:08 PM. Reason: typo

November 16, 2011	#5
fortyonenorth Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: NW Indiana Posts: 1,150	I used 7-gal "smart" pots this year for peppers and a few tomatoes. I would say the fabric falls somewhere between felt and canvas in terms of texture. The ones I bought were about $6 each. At that cost, I don't see a great benefit versus traditional clay or plastic pots. The plants I had in clay (growing side by side with the bags) all performed better. The "smart" pots have an odd way of holding on to moisture--even with my very well-draining container mix--whereas the clay breathes and tends to dry out between waterings in a more natural way. In terms of durability, I had a few "smart" pots tear at the end of season during clean-up. This is after a single season of use. They are durable, but I wouldn't expect them to last more than three years. We'll see. They seem like they would store well, but once they get all saturated with soil and algae, they are pretty stiff and unwieldy. I think I still prefer the stacking ability of plastic or clay. With all that said, Greenhousemegastore is listing some less expensive pots which might make more sense economically: http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/p...egradable-pots http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/p...egradable-pots For the grey ones, they are selling a pack of five 5-gal pots for $6 or a pack of five 7-gal pots for $8. That's pretty cheap IMO. I'm not a seamstress (seamster? ) but I'm thinking your materials would cost more than that - not to mention time and effort.

November 16, 2011	#6
maf Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: England Posts: 512	I have made similar containers from landscape fabric with stapled seams, no sewing needed. Cheap and easy to make, do the job well.

December 4, 2011	#9
LuvsToPlant Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Maine (northeastern) USA Posts: 53	I think the garbage bag method defeats the purpose of the "smart pot" idea. lakelady ... yes you can make them out of a good landscape fabric. The purpose of smart pots is for aeration...It is a 'air-prune" container. Once the roots hits the sides of the pots it produces more fibirous roots. They are designed really to grow for years in the same pot... If needed...the best way to clean fabric containers...is to allow to dry out then brush off any extra dirt. If extra cleaning is felt needed...soak and wash in Oxyclean.

January 20, 2012	#10
bughunter99 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: zone 5 Posts: 821	You can sew them up in about 15 minutes out of landscaping fabric for a fraction of the price and at any size you like. I like to grow potatoes in them.