My experience with planters without holes is that the plants either shoot out roots over the top of the pot or that over winter much of the roots rot. Then I would have to take the whole plant out of the pot and cut out the dead roots.

There is something to be said, both good and bad, about pots with holes and pots without holes. I have both in my pond. Yup, roots will shoot out through the holes and the pot must be destroyed to divide and transplant. On the other hand, I've had plants become rootbound in a hole-less pot and had them fill the pot so tightly that I again had to destroy the pot to get it out.

hmmmm.......sounds like either way is a pain! I guess I'll keep using the ones with holes. I'd rather have their roots going down, than coming up out the top!
I just can't believe how aggressive most all water plants are. I guess that's the name of the game though!

I have always used pots with holes because:

1) they were free.

2) I figured that it would allow some type of circulation.

and 3) they work better in my plant filter because the roots can go through the holes and help clean the water.

I like your #3 pondmaninal. That's an important function! I hadn't thought about that.

P.S.....you're in Alabama, right? I hope you did okay with the tornadoes!

catherine -- I just made the same connection with pondman in al. That was one scary day and night. I'm in GA.

I don't have a pond yet, but I'm planning one. Thinking about the plants in pots with holes..... Is there some sort of tray or something that could be submerged and used to hold the pots? Might that help confine the roots that go all haywire? You'd still need to remove and trim and such, but maybe it would help keep the roots under some sort of control. ?

Hi bagsmom,
The only time the mass of roots coming out of the pot holes is a problem for me is when I try to divide them, so I think there's probably no way around that. But I do like what pondmaninal said about the roots helping to filter the water. I think they probably do help alot. So I guess I'll quit fighting it! :)

Catherinet, yes, I'm in Alabama. We had no damage to the house and ponds but my wife's metal shed is wrapped around the end of my workshop and gouged the roof when it hit.

When I divide, I just cut the roots from the holes. That promotes new root growth in the new pot.

Bagsmom, there will be a pond gathering at my house in June. I'm two hours from Atlanta. I'm full of ideas for ponds and a plant collector.

Glad to hear you didn't have any major damage pondman!

Those mesh pots just aren't strong enough to last many seasons, good thing they are cheap.

I plant marginals in them in pea gravel and let the roots wander. I don't divide until I have to. Not always every year.

I grow waterlilies either in dirt on top of the liner (3 ponds) or in black plastic oil pans with dirt.

All the plants in my biggest pond are planted right in the rocks except for a floating island planter. No other pots in there. I hate seeing pots. I find it easy to pull up excess growth out of the rocks. Waterlilies have never done well in this pond so there aren't any. Too shady for them.

It seems to me that pots that do not have holes in them are meant to help keep nutrients sealed in the pot and make it less likely to leech nutrients in the pond, when the top is sealed properly with clay. Rock is placed on top of the clay so fish do not get at the clay.

I don't have fish. And I don't even use stones on top of any of my pots. I just lower them down very slowly into the water. I quit using stones because when I have to divide the plant, the stones make it harder, and then I have to dig all the stones out of the dirt.
I don't think the nutrients (of a fertilizer tab) are going to leak out the bottom, any more than they might leak out the top....

I've used pots with holes but the raccoons have killed all but the marsh merigolds so I have a whole bunch of square and round pots I'd like to see go to a good home here in Seattle jimewins@comcast.net