Where on earth are these nifty slotted pots coming from??

[rosemadder]

I have been seeing these on orchids at the florist shops. I got very excited and asked if I could get more pots like them-- but no one in the shops has ANY idea where the heck they come from. They just happen to be riding on the plants when they are shipped in.




Some have long narrow slits in the sides, others have a whole lot of tiny holes. They're transparent, some clear, some green.

These are not very small, mind you-- it's too bad I don't have anything in the shot for scale-- they are holding full-size large phals, the kind with spikes two feet high and flowers bigger than a palm.

I'd estimate they're maybe 4" wide and 6" deep? Ish?

They would make really awesome S/H containers. You can see the roots, and they get a lot of air, but the slits are narrow enough it will be hard for the roots to crawl out and get tangled, as would happen with a net pot.


Anyone have any idea where these can be found?

The common clear slotted orchid pots such as the ones at repotme top out at a squat 6" wide and 5.25" deep-- I'd really prefer taller containers to allow for the reservoir at the bottom.

Has anyone else seen these?? Can they be purchased anywhere? What sizes do they come in?? Gah! Do want!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

The pot in the first pic is extremely common. You can find them at Tindara's Orchid Supplies, RePotme.com, Chula Orchids.

Don't know where to find the second pot.

[rosemadder]

The ones at tindara and repotme that look most similar to this only come in 3"x2.75" and 4"x3.5". I have one of the 3" ones here at home, and it's itty bitty-- even my neostylis can't fit in it anymore, much less a mature large-format phal. (The big root you see above the edge of the green pot is around half an inch thick.)

This is the 4" repotme type pot:


Note that the slits in the sides of the repotme type appear to be longer than the ones in my pic. The top edge of the repotme pot is rimless, the one in my pic has a small rim. The bottom edge of the repotme pot has a lot of little notches, while the one in my pic has fewer, larger square notches-- and in my pic there's a rim around the bottom that holds the pot's floor up off the ground, while the repotme pot sits flat.

The pots in my pics are larger, and taller than they are wide. Next time I pass one of places I've seen them, I'll try to get another shot with something to show the scale better.

[Jayfar]

Tindara's has become my new go to dealer for slotted pots at good prices, although they may take a few days to get around to shipping. On a recent order, I was delighted to find they gave me a baker's dozen and a baker's half dozen on at least 2 of the sizes I ordered, plus threw in a couple 4 inch pots I hadn't ordered.

I also bought a couple of their new Plant Warrior pots, which I'll try out the next time I need to repot one of my larger standard Phals. These have an inverted, slotted cone molded into the bottom and come in 4 sizes from 1 to 5 gallon.

I like Kelley's Korner too and bought a few things from them at the SEPOS show. They go to a lot of shows.

[DavidCampen]

I have a similar problem finding terra cotta pots with holes in them for orchids. Green Barn in Florida has some but with those the holes are larger than what I want. So I have taken to drilling my own holes in terra cotta pots using a 1/2" dia. diamond core drill.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Ok, try the third recommendation I put up, Chula Orchids. They have a nice selection too.

[MattWoelfsen]

Originally Posted by King_of_orchid_growing:)

Ok, try the third recommendation I put up, Chula Orchids. They have a nice selection too.

I agree with your promotion of Chula Orchids. The owner is really nice, and communicates very well. The pots are great. I have migrated almost all of my orchids into these pots from Chula.

[jeremyinsf]

Thanks to everyone - it's great to hear about suggestions other than repotme. They are... expensive.

And I really like to give business to really nice orchid people :-)

[rosemadder]

I'm interested in emailing chula and asking about the height of their pots. It's not listed. They have a 5" that looks promising.
http://www.chulaorchids.com/assets/images/5.0slot.jpg

Stopped by Trader Joe's tonight, and sure enough here's more mystery slotted pots:



Some had opaque green pots, which I hadn't seen before:

[jeremyinsf]

If you went to the TJ's here in SF, they have had those pots for a while. Depending on the orchid, they use different ones. I often see the green ones with the Miltoniopsis etc. A problem though is that they are very thin and crack easy. I threw out a stack of them just this weekend!