Most aquatic plant growers pay little attention to the container in which they place their plants. They should. Our study shows that the container your plant is in will make a huge difference in plant growth and appearance.

For this study, two aquatic plant growers wanted to test if using porous fabric containers or the standard plastic containers would make a difference in the growth and appearance of a plant. While the vast majority of aquatic plants are grown in plastic, fabric containers are newer on the market and have gained popularity. Plants were grown together, side by side, in fabric containers and plastic pots. All treatment was exactly the same. The plants and their root structures were then examined.

Plant examination was appropriate to each plant. We counted leaves, flowers or stems and measured height and/or width.

The study was conducted in two places, Fish N’ Fun in Odessa, Texas, a retail aquatic plant grower and in Edmond, Oklahoma with the president of the Water Garden Society of Oklahoma.

Plant #1 was a Thalia (hardy water Canna) started in April 2002 and examined in September 2002.
The fabric grown plant was noticeably larger and had 3 flowers.
Measurements were:

When the containers were removed, we saw the roots in the plastic container were circling around the outer edge of the pot with no roots in the middle of the container. In the fabric container, however, there was no root circling and the roots had filled the fabric thoroughly.

Thalia grown in a plastic and fabric container.
With every species tried, the plants grown in fabric filled out their containers much better than the same plant grown in plastic.
 

The root structure of a plastic container grown Thalia with the root ball partially washed away. As the root ball is exposed, it becomes obvious that no roots are growing in the middle of the ball.

Close up of the roots from the fabric grown Thalia. Both the roots and the tops of the fabric grown Thalia had grown to twice the size as the Thalia placed in plastic for the same amount of time.
 

The root structure of a plastic container grown Thalia. Roots are circling on the outside, leaving a middle area largely devoid of roots.

 

The root structure of a fabric container grown Thalia with the bag removed. The roots have branched and filled the entire pot area. This root structure has at least twice the volume of roots as in the plastic pot

Plant #2 was a Pickeral Rush, started with 1 division in April, and examined in September, 2002.
The plant grown in the fabric was larger and had filled the entire container, whereas the plastic grown plant took up only one side of the pot.
The measurements were:

	The root structure of this Water Lily had pan-caked on the bottom of the 16” plastic no holes container, with the roots circling on the outer rim of the pot. This root ball had a foul smell.
	The roots of the Water Lily from the plant grown in fabric. This root ball was full of branched roots and was very tight.
	White Water Lilies with the containers removed. The plant grown in fabric (right) had 63 leaves vs only 34 for the plant grown in a traditional plastic lily container.

Plant #5 was a Louisiana Iris, planted from a single clump in March and examined in September, 2002.
The Iris grown in fabric had completely filled the pot, whereas the Iris grown in the plastic container was clumped on one side of the container, leaving the other half of the pot empty. Therefore, the fabric grown Iris was a much fuller plant, even though the width of both plants was basically the same. The measurements were:

Also noticeable was the formation of some type of green slime on top of the soil but beneath the mouth of the plastic container. This algae formation can only be described as gross. With the containers removed, the fabric grown plant had a root structure that had filled the pot, whereas the soil directly beneath the Iris in the plastic pot had turned black and had a foul odor. Some roots had grown out of the drain holes in the bottom of the plastic pot. These roots were thriving and were the healthiest roots formed by the plastic container plant.

	The root structure from a Louisiana Iris grown in a porous fabric container with the fabric removed. The roots were well branched and had completely filled the fabric area.
A black rot had developed in the ball area of the Louisiana Iris grown in the plastic container. Notice the healthy root growth from the bottom of the plant. These roots had escaped through a drain hole in the pot and had developed nicely outside the container.

Plant #6 was a Bog Lily, started from a single plant in March and examined in September, 2002.
The most noticeable difference between the plants was that the Bog Lily grown in fabric had a much deeper, darker color than the plant grown in plastic. The leaves were deep red while the stem was a bright green.
In the plastic pot the plant’s leaves and stems were a pale white with far less red and green.
The fabric grown Bog Lily had bloomed twice, whereas the plastic grown plant had only bloomed once.
The measurements were:

	The most noticeable difference in the Bog Lilies was color. This Bog Lily grown in fabric had a deep red and green color in the leaves, while the stems were deep yellow and green.
This Bog Lily, grown in a plastic container, had fewer leaves and poor coloring in the leaves and stems. The soil in the plastic container had turned black and had a foul smell.

Conclusion – Every plant we looked at had developed a markedly better root structure in the fabric container as opposed to a plastic pot. The roots had branched and filled the fabric, whereas in the plastic container the roots were circled on the outside, often leaving areas in the middle of the pot empty of roots.. The porosity of the fabric also made a big difference in the health of the soil. The soil in the fabric containers after six months in the pond was better, with a natural color instead of a black rot, and did not have as much of a foul odor. With a better root structure and healthier soil, the plants grown in fabric containers far outperformed those same species grown in traditional plastic pots in the same conditions.

Perhaps the largest aquatic grower using fabric containers is Givhandy’s in Rydal, Georgia.
Givhandy’s is a wholesale grower supplying aquatic plants to over 120 Home Depot stores in the southeast.
 “We like the “Pond Pots” because fabric gives us a better root structure”, explains grower Marie Givhan, “when you get better roots, you will have a better looking plant”.

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