Amberigo, decorative pots are nice, but growing citrus in black plastic pots work best..
SOme ppl use barrels, too.
Whatever you decide, make sure the pots have drainage holes..Toni

Millet gave me a place to order tall tree pots--& even sent me 2!! Can't find the addy though. They are black plastic but there is a real good spray paint called "paint for plastic" that I used to make them a lighter color to keep them from getting too hot from sun. They look nice.
Just paint the pots!

Patty, is the web site www.treequest.com ? This is where I buy my citrus containers from. Toni

No, I looked at Treequest when you posted it a while back. I can't remember the site Millet gave, but the pots were the same size & almost half the price.
I will have to hunt thru old emails LOL

I like the faux clay pots made of a plastic foam. They are lightweight, tough, look pretty and come in many sizes. For 6' and up citrus I use 24" or larger tapered pots. They are deep enough and *wide* enough to resist being blown over. A tapered pot is needed, unless you plan to put another pot inside a decorative one. With and urn shape, you won't be able to get a plant out of the pot without lots of trouble.

Black plastic nursery pots are fine, unless you want to display your plants-then you want something attractive!

Big good-looking pots are expensive. I saw some I really wanted at a local nursery- they were over $200.

I don't use big clay pots. They are too heavy and they break too easily.

The pots in your link were very attractive, but might be too narrow for a tall tree (might tip over too easily).

Lisa

Yes, UR right about tall pots tipping over! The ones I have are 11" across & 24 " deep. I have so many plants that the cheapest are best for me. Clay pots are too heavy - unless they are small. Decorative foam ones look nice but too much $$$. And, yes, they must be tapered at bottom or you may never get them out without damage to roots.
My black plastic ones really do look nice spray painted.

The best place I have found is Stuewe & Sons in Corvallis, OR. Telephone number 800-553-5331 Their web site is www.stuewe.com This is the company Patti is trying to remember. Treequest just buys their pots from Stuewe & Sons and resells them at a much higher price. You can purchase just about any thing required from germinating to growing on. I use a lot of their 8-gallon containers 11"W X 24" deep, and for smaller starter trees or taller seedlings I use 9-gallon container which is 9"W X 15.5" deep. They sell all the way from one container to truckloads. - Millet

What I'd like to find is some cheap thermochromic paint (or ready made pots) that changes colour from black to white at around 75F!
Then the pots would absorb heat in cool weather, and reflect heat in hot weather.
Probably doesn't exist!
Perhaps a good idea for any inventors/entrepreneurs?

Those are pretty cool. I wish they came larger. Does anyone know who has these wholesale and larger?

Citrange that's a cool concept but I'm not sure how it can be done...not with plastic anyhow. I'm not sure why they use black in the first place. The grower I buy my 7 gallon trees from uses a terra cotta color plastic pot.
Does anyone know why they use black?

Citrange, you can paint one half of the container white, and leave the opposite side black. During the winter rotate the black side so the black surface is facing the sun to absorb heat. A the same time, the white side reflects light to any plants on the back (dark) side of the container. During the summer, turn the white side towards the sun's rays which will help keep the container's soil cool. - Millet

I don't know if this would hurt citrus, but my friend painted her pots w/car spray paint..Again, I don't know if it'd bother a citrus, but it didn't hurt her other plants. She had 2 really large containers and painted them gold..found them at a garage sale, so the project was reasonable..Toni

Hi everyone. I have 2 of my trees in plastic terracotta colored planters (like Four Winds growers recommends). My other tree is in a larger plastic pot. I have looked at the nice decorative pots, but decided they were too expensive and heavy. I do have an idea for the color changing paint. The show "I want that" on HGTV showed a paint called Eclipse from the Alsa Corporation. I don't know if this would hurt citrus, but if only the outside of a container is painted I donÂt think it will be a problem.

HGTV link - http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/rm_paint_other/article/0,1797,HGTV_3765_3907143,00.html

Alsa Link - http://alsacorp.com/products/homeusepaints/homepaints.htm

Example - http://alsacorp.com/products/homeusepaints/vase_eclipse44.htm

I really dont think that the paint on the container would hurt the tree or plant as long as it was dry an cured,hardened and the container was empty when the paint was applied

I thought that one of the above postings was a good idea, black on one side white on the other

I did like the idea of using thermochromic paint. I found that posting very interesting.

Although I did not follow up on JAGreenabove posting I will do so.

I think what Citrange had posted was very interesting I did look on the web for such.

I will look at JAGreenabove links above that he or she is willing to share

I think some of the above postings are great, And would like to thank those with there thoughts an help

If anyone finds out if the Apollo planters are available wholesale, please let me know.

I painted my pots with the plants in them LOL. I covered them w/ newspaper & put a piece of cardboard along the inside of rim. I did this months ago & it didn't hurt anything...except the paint on my fingertips!
Millet,Thanks for that site again. I bookmarked it this time.
Patty

JAGreen, I looked at that site from alsacorp & the stuff sounds amazing! They just had the re run of 'I want that' & gave a demo of that paint. I say WOW! Cool stuf but VERY expensive. It goes on either blue or black & when it gets warm it turns white.
I like the idea of painting half white & leaving other side black...much cheaper.

Landscapers often have a pile of discarded pots that they will let you rumage through. They will give, or sell for a small charge, all the pots you want.

A thought about changing pot colors. If you have your plant in a black nursery pot, and have an identical pot that is white, you could simply slip the white pot over the black one when you wanted to change colors. When you are ready to go back to black, take the white one off.

Here is a trick I use when separating pots. Sometimes old plastic pots can be hard to pull apart. I have found that you can slip a stick through the drain hole in the bottom pot and pull the top pot while you stand on the stick. They will almost always come apart easily

Patty_in_Wisc, I agree with you that the paint is very expensive. Some days I get tired of a lot of the cool toys being every expensive.

Jessica

JAGreen, it's amazing that someone mentioned an impossible idea of making something turn light in heat & YOU happened to see that show on hgtv!! Thank you again for posting that.
Ned, I would never pay a garden center for thier old pots--they throw them out anyway. And, (sorry) but I'd never put 2 pots together only to get them apart again. To me, spraying one half would be easier.
You know, those 5 gal. buckets for joint compound or paint or whatever, are also very good for tree pots! Just put drain holes in them & paint them.
Patty

Patty, Whatever suits!

Ned

I sometimes us ethose beach barrel witht he rope handles and drill holes in them,barrel liners or patio ponds work well to and I grow my other tropicals in them.I have ficus and schlefflera in them now,but my lemons are due to arrive today!!!! I am sooo excited!!!!

Lemon did you get your trees yet? I'm expecting a variegated Kumquat and can't wait for it to come in..Toni

Got them yesterday...came in in OK shape.There were quite a few broken branches and the trees were basically bareroot and stuffed in a pot with straw.I took a month to get them from growquest.Having been the first time ordering citrus through mail order,I don't know what to expect as typical.I will say that, with the boxes used to ship these trees,the branches that were broken must have been done when boxing them up and would not of been done during shipping.There was too much space inside and the pots were prevented from moving with wood slats.There was no damage to the box itself,so any damage had to be prior.I am sure they will recover fine and am overall happy with the purchase.I have a VERY green thumb and these should be in shape my the end of summer.They are about 4' tall and 1/2'' trunk diameter.Hope your trees come soon.

Lemon, oh my God you ordered from Growquest!!!??? I'm really sorry hearing that.
A while back there was a long thrad about Groquest. I wish you had read that and Gardenwatchdog before purchasing from them. They are having major problems..At least you were lucky getting your trees..If you read GWD, there are numerous ppl still waiting for shipments or refunds..it's been going on over a year..
Even w/your green thumb, I hope you can bring them back to health.
That's why I like shopping at Briteleaf..her plants come in perfect shape..No broken stems, etc. NO pests..It'll be 4 yrs I've been ordering from Briteleaf and never had problems..ever.
My tree will probably come tomorrow..I'm sooo excited. I love Kumquats and have never seen a variegated type. And fruits grow profusely. Keep us posted on your trees..Toni

I read AFTER the fact about their horrible service.I have the same problems dealing with chameleons and other animals through mail order...lots of cheats and shoddy business people.I am sure they will be OK,but it did take a month to get them and they are just stuck in pots with straw and no soil.Yikes...what is it about people needing babysat...can no on just do what they are in the business of doing,without someone calling and e-mailing and pleading for a smooth transaction??? I hate the land of mail order,but it is the only way sometimes.