Terra Cotta Pots

As spring kicks off, gardening centers are stacking their shelves with many types of gardening pots and garden decor.  Terra cotta parts are great garden pots and can be used as a vegetable planter or a flower planter.  Here are some advantages and disadvantages of using these pots:

Advantages:

• They are durable and have withstood the test of time.
• Prevents plants from tipping over.  For plants that stretch horizontally or for plants that are top heavy, terra cotta parts help to keep them stable.
  Affordable.  Terra cotta pots can be considered a reasonable choice compared to other more decorative pots on the market.
• Well Stocked in different sizes.  Terra cotta pots come in sizes with the bottom as small as a quarter (I found a few in Michael’s craft store) as well as large pots of 10 gallons and up.
• Great for letting plant roots breathe and reducing root rot.  Because terra cotta is made from clay, some of the water in a pot is absorbed into the pot.  The best thing to prevent rotting is to not over water and make sure your pot has atleast one drainage hole in the bottom.

Disadvantages:

• Cold weather causes them to crack.  Some pots are marketed as being crack resistant, but for extremely cold zones, terra cotta plants can crack.
• Larger pots can be heavy and even immoveable.  If you purchase a large terra cotta pot for the outdoors, make sure the plants can live outside during the winter because it is hard to move large terra cotta pots.
• Less affordable than plastic containers.  If you are looking for just a quick inexpensive garden pot, terra cotta is not the cheapest on the market.