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Perennials in 9cm pots, plant out now?

amycat1amycat1 Posts: 4
in Plants
I have ordered some perennials in 9cm pots, should I pot them into bigger pots before planting them out in my new border or can I plant them out straight away? I have purchased a thalictrum Delavayi, geranium, superbum Snowcap, Astilbe Brautschleier, Campanula persicifolia var. alba, Sanguisorba officinalis Pink Tanna
many thanks gardeners!! 
Amy 
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Posts

  • LoxleyLoxley Posts: 5,698
    Plant them straight out if you've got spots ready for them. If they are being slotted in amongst established plants that are likely to crowd them, it might be worth growing them on though.
    "What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour". 
  • Robert WestRobert West Posts: 241
    Get them in. It's a good time as you won't need to water them too often for a few months. 
  • PosyPosy Posts: 3,601
    I restfully disagree. 9cm pots are tiny, the plants are just babies and the world is a big, scary place. I would check that the roots are filling the pots and when they are, pot them up. I wouldn't plant them out until they are growing on strongly.
  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,445
    I think a lot depends on your soil and how prepared you are to keep them adequately watered and their space protected. I certainly wouldn't plant out from anything less that a 1 litre pot in my large garden where everything is a trek from a water supply and things easily get crowded out. 


    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • TheGreenManTheGreenMan Posts: 1,957
    edited April 2022
    I planted some of mine out about a month ago. They are growing well even though we’ve had lots of frosty nights. 

    Anything that the slugs love I’ve protected with a ring of sharp grit. 

    If they’re not gonna be hidden away from sun and water by bigger plants then I’d go for it 
  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    Well, there you go @amycat1 do it or don't. I'd split it down the middle and do it in a fortnight😉
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • PlantmindedPlantminded Posts: 3,580
    If your plants have good root systems and are not just plugs recently potted on into 9cm pots, I'd take advantage of the warmer weather approaching and plant them out in the next few days.  If they are very small with no roots appearing through the holes in the pots, I'd keep them in the pots for another couple of weeks until they are well established and plant them out then.
    Wirral. Sandy, free draining soil.


  • TheGreenManTheGreenMan Posts: 1,957
    Yes, I should have added that mine all had roots coming out of the bottom
    of the pots. This was the thing that I looked for before deciding they were ready to be set free. 
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    edited April 2022
    I wouldn't plant them out here, regardless of how well they're growing. I only do it wiht plants I've grown myself, and only if they're absolutely bombproof. 
    It comes down to your location, and your climate as to whether it's worthwhile. I'm the opposite of @nutcutlet here, in that the ground is colder and wetter for far longer, so it's easy for small plants to fail   :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    As you can see there is no right or wrong answer, it depends on location/climate 😊

    I always pot them on into 2L pots for 2-3 months/until the roots fill the bigger pot. They start off undercover, then I aclimatase them by leaving them out in the day then overnight too, before planting out. This helps toughen them up (they will have been grown ‘soft’ under protected conditions in the nursery) and the bigger root system means they cope better in the ground with the huge temperature swings I get in my mountain climate. At this time of year it can be -5c overnight then over 20c during the day.
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
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