Protecting snowdrops, needed ?

[annew]

I use lattice pots for my stock plants, but they are plunged to the rim in sand, and I cover them in winter to keep too much rain off. It is very easy to sort and repot them in the summer, and they make a lot of root growth out into the sand. I always put a cm or so of grit in the bottom of the basket, as some are a little short of drainage holes in the base.

[Maggi Young]

I use lattice pots for my stock plants, but they are plunged to the rim in sand, and I cover them in winter to keep too much rain off. It is very easy to sort and repot them in the summer, and they make a lot of root growth out into the sand. I always put a cm or so of grit in the bottom of the basket, as some are a little short of drainage holes in the base.

Eh? What sort of lattice pots are you using that haven't enough holes?  Are they not an offence against the Trades Description( Implied Terms) Act ? 

[RichardW]

Richard, my RO were in full sun, they only really thrived when I moved them to a spot that was baked. Soil here is heavy clay.

Jacqueline the pots are plunged and left in situ until the bulbs have out grown it. I've only been using them for a few years and have found some that wouldn't grow in my soil (heavy clay) are doing much better in the pots. I've tried for years to grow Primrose Warburg without success, 2 small bulbs were planted in a pot with a well drained mix a few years ago and I have 4 big spikes this year.

Early days but so far the pots seem to be working.

[Leena]

A stupid question: what are lattice pots? Are same as clay pots? 

[RichardW]

Leena they are mesh pots designed for aquatic plants so have very good drainage, eg.

http://www.lilieswatergardens.co.uk/?cPath=106_137

My main concern about using them has always been security, I do mulch a lot and make sure the top of the pot is buried and well hidden but they can be removed very quickly.

[Ding Dong]

No Leena - they are plastic, the type of pots that you plant pond plants in. They are usually available from aquatic plant suppliers.

[Alan_b]

In response to Jacqueline, most people have their lattice pots below ground and keep them there, although there are a few exceptions, I think.  The original intention was to confine the spread of each particular cultivar so it was easy to find and lift when you wanted to divide it (which might be in the summer when the bulb is dormant).  However I see that RichardW and perhaps others are using the pots to have the bulbs in the ground yet keep them in a medium other than the native soil.  I myself suffer from marauding insects with a partiality for snowdrop bulbs (swift moth larvae) and I am experimenting with the use of lattice pots to impede their progress.  It's too early to say if this is doing any good.   

[JacquelineJ]

Thank you Anne, Richard and Alan for your explanations.  I can understand using them to keeping your cultivars together rather than letting them mingle. I don't have that problem at the moment with just one of this or that.

I'm going to try mine straight in the ground in a raised bed.  The soil here is quite friable even after rain.  I moved some snow yesterday and the icy centimeter of the top layer and had a look underneath.  It was still light and crumbly so hopefully my chosen one's will enjoy life in this garden. 

[annew]

Eh? What sort of lattice pots are you using that haven't enough holes?  Are they not an offence against the Trades Description( Implied Terms) Act ? 

You'd think so, wouldn't you? The moulding process is not very efficient, and some are not fully perforated. More a problem plunging in soil, which if a bit clayey(?) can impede drainage through the base as well, once the basket is pressed into the hole. It's a 'belt and braces' situation, and maybe not necessary in sand.

[Alan_b]

I'm going to try mine straight in the ground in a raised bed.  The soil here is quite friable even after rain. 

If you would care to do a bit of science, you could try a few bulbs in lattice pots (using the same soil) to see if it makes any discernible difference to how they grow subsequently.

[RichardW]

Anne I did notice the hole looked compacted when i removed a pot so am now using pot crocks to add a little extra drainage if they are going to ground that hasn't been been well worked, which is most of it 

The soil on the bank in the kitchen garden is terrible but most things have thrived since i started planting 5 ish years ago, seems to be plicatus that don't like it yet they grow elsewhere in soil not much better, fickle things 

[Maggi Young]

My main concern about using them has always been security, I do mulch a lot and make sure the top of the pot is buried and well hidden but they can be removed very quickly.

Richard, I quite understand your security concerns - such problems need, sadly, to be addressed  - what about a long metal stake, with a hook at the end, well bashed into the ground  to hold the lattice pot in lace? It would require to be done first, before the pot is  planted, and would make it a bit more tricky for  you lifting the  bulbs when necessary, but it might at least prove something of a deterrent to the thieves that are about.

[RichardW]

Have been thinking about securing them but not sure how to do it and make it practical, although I've had many things pinched over the years (inc a large pot of agapanthus last year  ) the snowdrops have been ok, only had one case of someone digging up nivalis & they were caught walking out to catch a bus back home, that was our fault for not selling them apparently 

Suspect anything that would make them difficult to get out would also make them too difficult for me to remove when the time comes.

[KentGardener]

had one case of someone digging up nivalis & they were caught walking out to catch a bus back home

B@star@ds!   

I am so lucky with my very private little garden (so far).

[Leena]

Leena they are mesh pots designed for aquatic plants so have very good drainage, eg.

Thank you, RichardW and DingDong.