Bought some of these peat planters to up pot my melons and tomatoes, they seem to just absorb every bit of water I add, and suck all the water from the soil. Should I just re pot these again in plastic containers or let it ride and water every other day? I'd hate to disturb the roots again.
Edit: Seems as tho the general consensus says these suck. I guess tomorrow I'll re pot again in the plastic containers. The unfortunate cold weather new jersey has been having is really putting a damper on getting these outside.and I feel as tho these planters are hindering the plants progress.
by Kidbugs
26 Comments
Leave them this round, but yeah, they suck.
Big suck.
Yes
Yes
Uber suck… most people use them one year then dropkick them right in the seedling maker and get better equipment their second year.
I finally learned my lesson on them. Dry out so fast. Instead of repotting I put them in shallow things that can hold water like my storage tote lids. For my peppers and eggplants I just uppotted the whole jiffy pot with plant into bigger planters
They are legitimately the worst. It’s impossible to maintain the right level of moisture in them. And their whole thing of “you can just bury them and they disappear!” thing is overstated as well. Unless your ground is sopping wet, they really don’t break down that quickly and the roots struggle to break through. They’re a scam, basically.
I start everything in plastic cells, then pot up in Solo cups (and ideally don’t have to pot up again, but if I do I have some 6″ plastic pots).
Because you’re right- peat just sucks the moisture out of your soil.
If you’re just going to toss the peat, you could just tear them off and not disrupt roots, just drop the whole pad of dirt into their new plastic home.
I’ve had zero problems with them. To me it makes it pretty obvious when they need to be watered
My germination rates in those were so so bad lol, I felt like they just dried out my seedlings.
Absolutely. The micro plastics make everything taste better as well!
They suck
i like them, you can put plastic wrap loosely across the dirt to help with evaporation. I used them because I’m too rough when i transplant out of plastic and bust up the roots. With these, I can just rip them apart, or rip the bottom out. I don’t pluck the whole thing into the ground though without ripping.
Yes.
No, no they don’t suck. But they require more work than plastic pots for sure .
>Do peat planters just suck?
Yes.
They have their place but it’s not for home gardeners. Farms will get the peat strips that are attached together – then the people riding the transplanter that gets towed behind the tractor rip the peat pots apart and plop them in.
So it’s not a case of “peat containers should never be manufactured,” it’s more that they’re bad for home gardeners. Farmers that I’ve seen use them keep them much wetter than you’d think.
Ya
Yes, horrible.
I tried them on year and when I replanted I just stuck them in the dirt because they are “supposed to decompose”. All they ended up doing was stunting growth because of course they didn’t decompose–I was still pulling out chunks of them at the end of the season.
Depends on your style, but I use them for most plants as I feel I have the most control over liquid application to the plants. Plus, less plastic is nice. I don’t plant them with the seedling, and I don’t generally use them for plants that struggle with minor root disturbances. Otherwise, they work well for me.
However… I get them free from a friend. I’m not sure I’d pay for them every year as I start hundreds of plants and they’re not reusable.
peat mining is destroying valuable habitats, just say no to peat products
At least in Switzerland peat products are banned due to their environmental impact and I hope the rest of the world will follow before we sell our peat bogs one bag at a time.
You gotta keep them in a tray and maintain an inch of water at the bottom of the tray cos they dry out so fast. I don’t like using peat products in general because of the environmental damage, and I don’t love the cost. Paper pots are fine but also annoying. I’ll still use paper or coir fiber pots for things really sensitive to transplant issues like sweet peas, but for everything else I use 1020 (or equivalent) trays.
Don’t waste your money. They compact, attract fungus gnats, prone to algae, a joke.
Here are my results using coco coir and perlite.
This was from March 21… seeds sown on March 16th.
https://preview.redd.it/y61227qsdzzg1.jpeg?width=4110&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5b996cbfe1d837411a337718084e48d5ba19e5a3
Yes
They aren’t the best. Use up the ones you have, and use something different in the future. I have some that are several years old. I pop the plant out of them when I’m transplanting to the garden, and reuse if they aren’t too badly damaged. If roots are poking through, I’ll gently rip the pot in a few places and plant it with the seedlings. I am down to less than a dozen, finally.
They suck, but you’re in the home stretch. I’d ride it out for another week or so, then plant them.