A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 the Forsythe pot really works!

I use to use this method to take cuttings and it does work pretty well, until I had to move and gave all my old pots away. I was loking for how to make this again and I came across a post by Mocha20 that redreshed my memory. I though I'd share this with all of you, it really does work!
http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/components/DG4419.pdf

Thanks, Kenny! I wanted to post but I couldn't find the article that explains all the necessary steps. The only thing I might add, I had much success with clay pots with no hole in the bottom. It was difficult to find the appropriate sized cork in my area. It would be fun to have gatherings where everyone brings pots, verimculite and cuttings to share with each other. This is a super easy way to propagate.

Thanks for posting the link! I can't wait to try a clematis cutting.

Joanne

Thanks for the link! I couldn't click on it without getting booted off the Garden Helper, but I was able to copy and paste so I could read it.

I made one of these pots yesterday but seem to be having some trouble. The water continually drains out of the drain holes and draws the water out of the clay pot in the process. Should I put the whole pot in a saucer of some sort to hold the draining water and will it stop draining when the saucer is full? I would hate to have an overflow to deal with every morning!

Joanne

I plug the small pot so that it cannot leak out of the drainage hole of the small pot. Don't forget to also wet the medium until water leaks out from the drainage holes of the bigger pot. Water should come from the side of the smaller clay pot because clay is pourous. I use a plastic pot for the bigger one instead of another clay one. I would assume you keep any pot with drainage holes in a saucer.

I used a clay pot that doesn't have any holes for the small pot and a plastic one for the larger pot. I also made sure to wet the vermiculite until it started draining from the bottom. The picture showed the larger pot sitting on a disc of some sorts so I assumed (wrongly it turns out) that it would stop draining after the excess water was gone. I put it in a saucer but it just seems to be slowly filling it up. Did yours always have water in the saucer? I really want to get this right so I can try to root my hydrangeas and clematis. Thanks for the help!

Joanne

Last night I purchased a new plastic pot that came with a saucer. I switched everything over to the new pot and waited to see if it fixed the problem. Even with the attached saucer the vermiculite keeps drawing water from the clay pot and draining through the bottom. It leaked out onto the counter and just keeps going.



What am I doing wrong??? I'm about to give up on the clay pot and just try to keep the vermiculite moist from bottom watering. ARGGG!

Joanne

how strange! maybe you should try bottom watering instead of the pot (I really can't figure out what the problem is!) I was taugh how to make self watering pots once, maybe I'll start a new thread wit hteh instructions!

Please do! Maybe it would work a little better for me. Thanks!

Joanne

Did you cover the bottom of the larger pot with paper towels? The larger pot should have a paper towel at the bottom that cover the holes.

Yes, I covered it with a paper towel before pouring the vermiculite in.

I poured out the excess water that builds up in the saucer and now just put a little water in the clay pot at a time. If I notice it building up too much I drain it out and try to keep it from overflowing. Will bottom watering work?

Joanne

Maybe it's the type of pot. I have made 3 forsythe pots and I haven't had any problems with the water overflowing other than the very fist time wetting down the vermiculite. I have even used household paper towels to cover the hole. the only thing I can guess is the type of pot. I know it may be a pain to change pots but I used the type of pot shown in the picture. I wish I could be more help.

Thanks for the advice Mocha, I'm going to get another pot and try again. What did you use to plug the clay pot hole with? I might get a new one of those too and start from scratch.

Joanne

I am going to go get everything needed and try that! What a good idea! I will have so many plants......I won't know what to do with all of them.......lol!!!

Lol plantqueen, I thought exactly the same thing! My pot will be working overtime all winter.

Joanne

It's recommended that you use cork to plug the hole. I prefer a clay pot without the hole. Hobby Lobby sells the wine corks in a variety of sizes. I tried to make sure that my paper towels covered the holes in the larger pot, as well.
Good luck! Let us know how the new pot works out.

Hey,

I conducted an experiment with vermiculite. I figured if you could develop roots in the forsythe pot, why wouldn't seeds germinate the same way. I was able to get a couple of seeds to sprout in moist vermiculite. I was really surprised. I was ready to trash the whole thing when I noticed the small plants. I'm going to try it again with seeds that are easy to sprout.

Great idea!! I have trouble keeping the soil at a constant moisture level when starting seeds. The forsythe pot would take care of that for me! Let me know which seeds do well for you and I will try experimenting as well. Thanks for sharing this!

Joanne

I looked at the link on the web and it was wonderful. I still have dial up and it was worth the wait. I am definitely going to try this one.