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Transplanting Biodegradable
Pots of Vegetable Plants
On this page find how to plant vegetable seedlings from biodegradable pots to garden soil, including:
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- Understanding biodegradable plant containers made of compressed organics or coconut coir.
- Advantages of vegetable starts in biodegradable pots.
- How to recognize and choose healthy vigorous vegetable seedlings.
- A step-by-step demonstration of an easy method for transplanting vegetable starts grown in biodegradable containers.
About Biodegradable Containers
Young vegetable plants are available in spring at garden retailers as individuals in convenient plastic and biodegradable pots, as well as in divided trays called 6-packs [See: Plants in 6-Packs].
Biodegradable nursery containers are made of compressed potting medium, paper-like wood pulp, coconut coir, or other natural organic materials. Their content is different than biodegradable beverage containers composed of various plant-starch-based plastics.
These nursery containers also are porous. Left in damp conditions in the soil, biodegradable plant pots slowly decompose in the same manner as does green compost, releasing nitrogen and other beneficial compounds into garden soil.
Choosing Healthy Plants
Choose only healthy plants in good condition, rejecting those that are underdeveloped with only a single pair of true leaves above their round seed leaves.
Avoid leggy seedlings that have long stems with just a few leaves—probably due to insufficient light during early growth. Ignore plants with physical damage or obvious diseases, or those that have already developed flower or small fruit.
It’s always important that vegetable starts not be root bound or crowded in their nursery containers prior to planting.
Pre-Planting Care
Use care in handling transplants during movement and holding until planting.
Water them whenever their soil dries, and keep them in a warm, well-lit area.
If conditions outside remain too cool to plant starts immediately, transplant them into individual pots to hold them for lengthy periods of time rather than allow them to become root bound and stunted.
How to Plant Vegetable Starts in Biodegradable Pots
In the demonstration that follows, learn how to plant vegetable starts grown in biodegradable pots.
A similar method is used for plants grown in individual plastic containers, except that the plant is removed from its container prior to transplanting and the container is recycled.
Step-By-Step Instructions
Choose healthy plants free from broken leaves and stems. Avoid all with yellowed foliage, plants already bearing flowers or fruit, and those that appear root bound.
Gather a trowel, a watering can, and your plants in biodegradable containers, and follow these steps:
How to Transplant Vegetable Plants from Biodegradable Nursery Containers
For plant starts grown in biodegradable pots, tear away the top of the pot below the soil line to prevent water from wicking after planting.
Slide plants grown in plastic containers out of their containers before planting: Invert the container over your open palm, press the bottom of the inverted container, and slide the rootball into your hand. Avoid pulling on the plant’s stem.
Dig a planting hole 1–2 in. (25–50 mm) deeper than the space from the top of the soil in the pot to its bottom.
Sprinkle about 1 tsp. (5 ml) of granular 5–5–5 fertilizer in the hole, mixing it into the soil.
Backfill the hole with enough soil to make its depth the same as the top of the soil in the biodegradable pot or the height of the rootball for plants grown in plastic containers.
Set the plant into the hole and backfill around it with soil.
Press the soil firmly in contact with the rootball.
Water after planting.