Grow Bags

Whether you want to grow nutritious fruits and vegetables or considering adding striking color through annual flowers, the pros of using grow bags in gardening are apparent.

Increasingly trendy in the last few years, grow bags are a priceless asset to those doing gardening in limited or less than optimum spaces.

Supplementary to their versatility, grow bags offer gardeners a quick and easy way to establish lush, healthy landscapes.

While it’s difficult to downplay the pros of gardening in produce bags, there are some cons of using grow bags that must also be checked.

By nature, the fabric grow bags are soft but do we naturally go “soft” on the credible anxiety and questions they pose?

 

Pros for Gardening in Grow Bags

Fabric pots are available in the gardens of both professional growers and home gardeners. In addition to accessibility, their ease of use is just a couple of reasons to go for grow bags.

Although there are various types, it is best to choose bags made of breathable and solid fabrics.

These bags offer good durability, as well as contribute to better overall plant health.

It can be used everywhere. Many gardeners begin using grow bags when wanting to extend their backyard garden area.

One of the substantial grow bag advantages is growing plants in places that were earlier considered nonusable, such as rented yards or even small apartment balconies.

It can have use in places with bad soil. Producers with heavy soils may specifically choose these bags as a means by which they can grow other successful production of root vegetables like carrots and potatoes.

If your ground isn’t quite up to the standards, using a grow bag can correct that. Comparable to a raised bed or container, you can grow plants in looser healthier soil.

Ease of use. The ease with which grow bags are assembled makes them a viable and cost-effective solution for many gardeners.

Excluding the need to remove grass or prepare beds using tools, even novice gardeners can make fantastic vegetable gardens and displays filled with annual flowering plants.

Bags are breathable. Other pros to gardening in grow loads relate to factors that can directly impact the plants’ health.

High-quality fabric growing bags allow for excellent drainage, so issues associated with overwatering are alleviated.

Frequent problems with other containers, such as root rot, are not a common source of concern when working with grow bags.

Plants have healthier root growth. Enhanced overall root health is one of the primary growth bag benefits.

Once the plant roots become established in the bag, their sensitivity to heat and moisture naturally begin the process of “air pruning.”, this process enables the plant to make a more solid root system.

Grow Bag Gardening Downsides

No one can claim that using grow bags is all bad, BUT before you go out and purchase them, it’s a good idea to know some of the downsides you’ll probably encounter.

Knowing all details will help you to make a more informed choice. These can include Endurance. Grow bags don’t last as long as hard-bodied containers.

It seems that the general consent is that fabric pots last 2 to 3 growing seasons, with few suggesting that they might last as long as 4 to 6 seasons.

This, usually, will differ with the environmental condition the bags are affected by and the overall superiority of the bag you buy.

Cost. If grow bags do not endure as long as other container options, you will want to ensure that they are more cost-effective, as you will be replacing them more often.

And the cost savings may not work for you. The cost of grow bags may vary depending on the growing volume of the bag and the manufacturer/distributor.

A 5-gallon bag, for example, can cost around $6 and more. If you’re changing the grow bag every 2-3 years, this will increase over a while.

Aesthetics. Grow bags do not look as pretty or chic as ceramic or terra cotta pots. The bags are typically a solid color (often black or gray) and do not come in patterns or designer motifs.

Hard-bodied pots, in reverse, have more style. They are more sightly (funnel, cone-shaped, etc.) and usually have a particular character to them with glazes or paints of the surface and textural interest with ridges and raised shapes. On the other hand, a grow bag looks like, well, a bag or sack.

Environmental concerns. The grow bags currently on the market aren’t all ecological friendly, as they are not all bio-degradable. Most of them are formed with poly-plastics that don’t degrade down.

This, of course, becomes a problem once the grow bags need to be thrown away and renewed.

Very water demanding. Grow bags need more watering than traditional pots do, and this is one of the most significant grow bag gardening disadvantages if you don’t have much additional time on your hands.

Grow bags are absorbent, meaning excess water will wick out of them rather quickly. This is an advantage because the chance of over-watering your plants is unlikely; nevertheless, it is a con of using grow bags since they will dry out rapidly, and you will have to water more often.

Mobility. While grow bags are well known for their mobility feature, that is not regularly the case. Grow bags are at hand in 1 – 200+ gallon size.

Any bags over 20 gallons could be problematic to move when they are planted since they do not need to possess sturdy walls or structural strength like traditional pots and, in some cases, have soft fabric handles prone to tearing.

How to Grow Bag Advantages Correlate Overall to Their Disadvantages

Although there are many reasons for using grow bags, their use may not be necessary for all gardens.

Grow bags may be a valid alternative, but they are not certainly the best solution for all when you weigh the disadvantages of grow bags.

They are short-lived, not-so-good-looking growing containers that can induce considerable costs over the long term and, on the other hand taking more of your time once it comes to watering.

That being said, in certain moments, good-maintained fabric pots grant for greater flexibility, and their simplicity of use as well as quick installation make the prospect of creating beautiful gardens more attainable.