Forum home› The potting shed

Is there a 'golden rule' for understanding small plant pot sizes?

young codgeryoung codger Posts: 448
in The potting shed
It is easy to understand the 1 litre size and larger.

 I was looking at some square pots online today. 11cm is how they were described. Is it too difficult for manufactures to put  the three dimensions of a 3 dimensional shape on the label?


What about small round pots? 7cm or 11cm? Are these the diameters of the top.

I have some pots that are the same width as a 9cm pot, but are about a 1/3 shorter. I don't know if they are also described as 9cm. They are a very handy size for what I do, and I would like to get some more. I'm not sure what the search criteria would be for these?

Posts

  • JennyJJennyJ DoncasterPosts: 6,095
    Generally speaking the size in inches or cm is the top diameter for round pots and the length of one side of the top for square ones, but there's a lot of variation in depth and in how tapered they are so I don't think there's a standard. Then there are pots that are labelled by volume (generally the bigger sizes), and ones that are square at the top morphing to round at the bottom. Traditional terracotta pots used to come in pots (classic plant pot shape), half-pots which were shallower, and long toms which were taller.
  • B3B3 Posts: 21,473
    https://forum.gardenersworld.com/discussion/1050804/what-is-a-9cm-pot#latest
    I posted a similar question a while ago and got some useful answers
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • ObelixxObelixx Vendée, Western FrancePosts: 27,584
    edited May 2021
    It's easy enough to use your hand to assess small pot sizes.  For example, I know that from the tip of my thumb to the tip of my outstretched little finger is 9"/23cms - a handy planting distance too.

    The width of my hand measured at the knuckles is 4"/10cm - standard for measuring horses and handy for pot depths and width.   Fingers' width and length of middle finger are also good guides for buying pots if I need to but usually, for moving seedlings from plug trays to small pots I just recycle the 5 to 7cm ones that came with small brassicas or bedding plants and when the plants are big enough to need moving on from those they can generally cope with being planted out.  If not, next pot up which would be a 9cm jobby.
    "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
  • young codgeryoung codger Posts: 448
    edited May 2021
    Ok, thanks all. I think it best not to get too bogged down with the finer details of pot sizes. 

    I will have to be satisfied by having a general idea about pot sizes. 

    Just as an observation, for some reason 9cm pots seem to be a popular size for online & postal retailers to send their plants in. 🌱🌞
  • ObelixxObelixx Vendée, Western FrancePosts: 27,584
    That's all about P&P and viable root ball sizes once you get past plug plant size.  Convenience.
    "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
  • KT53KT53 Posts: 6,422
    It annoys me that although pots increase in size by quite small increments, saucers don't.  4" pots almost completely fill a 4" saucer but the next size saucer is 6" which is really far too big, and looks daft on a window sill.
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Leicestershire, UKPosts: 11,336
    All I can say is that whatever pot size I need, it will be the size I have just run out of!
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • philippasmith2philippasmith2 Posts: 1,681
    BobTheGardener said:
    All I can say is that whatever pot size I need, it will be the size I have just run out of!
    That just about says it - otherwise known as Sods Law :D
Sign In or Register to comment.