Grow Bags for Zucchini

digitS'

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I was "progressively" worse in math the further I went in school and the math required of someone in history and the social sciences ain't much.

Total root area would be different from ideal depth but it may make a good deal of sense to emphasize depth in container growing.

Gurney's seems to be strongly hedging their bets on soil requirements. (Pi in the sky?) However, not wanting to struggle through figuring out the volume of a cylinder, I'll simply say that I think @Ridgerunner wins the pot this hand while @flowerbug is sacked out and my head is in the feed bag for a late lunch ;).

Mary is, at least, holding the purse on this purchase.

Steve
who is trying his best to have 3 years worth of plastic film out of a 100 foot roll but needing 34 feet, each year. do you suppose that the plastic film company will be generous enuf to grant me the extra 2 feet of their own product? no, i don't suppose so ;)
 

ninnymary

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Steve, you like charts, there is one near the bottom of this link that might help. I did not find zucchini on that chart but did find summer squash. As far as I'm concerned, close enough. 18" to 24".


I went to Gurney's website. The dimensions for the 20 Gallon Grow Tub is 18.25" x 18.25" x 14.5" high. They say it holds 4.5 cu ft of growing media. The 15 Gallon Grow Tub is 15.75-in. x 15.75-in. x 14.5-in and holds 3 cubic feet.

I found this in the questions and answers section. (Usually I use blue to color text, but since it is Mary...)

Can I plant zucchini in this?

Asked by Susan 1 year ago

Verified Reply - Brad

Zucchini can be grown in the Grow Tub 15 Gallon.


Mary. I suggest you go to their website and ask how many zucchini can you plant in a 15 gallon? How many zucchini can you plant in a 20 gallon? You might get an interesting answer.
Ridge, it's interesting that the chart in the link shows summer squash as medium rooting and tomatoes ad deep rooting. Yet Gurneys says to plant tomatoes in 15 gal and zucchini in 20 gal. backwards.

Mary
 

ninnymary

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Thank you for suggestion the Smart pot site. It's interesting that they say 15 gal for zucchini and 20 for tomatoes, complete opposite of what Gurney suggests.

I am leaning more to the 15 gallon. They are smaller and would take less soil to fill. The 20 gallons are huge, They are bigger than my black nursery tree containers. so I probably will return them.

You have helped a lot @Alasgun. Much appreciated.
 

SprigOfTheLivingDead

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I want to try grow bags to grow my zucchini in since I don't have much ground space. The Gurney catalog says to use a 20 gallon size one for zucchini. I got them and they seem huge! They are slightly bigger than my black nursery tree containers.

I have tried googling it and seen some youtubes. Not much info on what size to use. The youtube videos just show large pots. Apparently the bigger the pot they will use less water and nutrients so you won't have to water and feed as often.

I have been debating whether to return the ones I have and get the 15 gallon size ones. I know I can just not fill them up as much but the size is kind of bothering me.

What do you guys suggest? The 20 or 15 gallon size?

Any one else tried growing in grow bags? There are pros and cons. What has been your experience?

Thanks for any thoughts or ideas.

Mary
Well, I can't speak to the zucchini but I have grown tomatoes and peppers in my basement for a few years and the NEED a 10+ gal pot. You can grow them in a 5 gal, but you're just starving the plant and a 10-15gal is really ideal, 15 being the correct choice

So, that being said, tomatoes grow up while zucchini grows out and are a significant plant. If I were to grow the zucs I would err on the side of caution at shoot for 15gal. I even check airpots and their largest is only around 10gal
https://air-potbros.com/collections/garden/products/air-pot-garden-extra-large

For cloth pots I have traditionally leaned to Smart Pots and love them.
 

catjac1975

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I want to try grow bags to grow my zucchini in since I don't have much ground space. The Gurney catalog says to use a 20 gallon size one for zucchini. I got them and they seem huge! They are slightly bigger than my black nursery tree containers.

I have tried googling it and seen some youtubes. Not much info on what size to use. The youtube videos just show large pots. Apparently the bigger the pot they will use less water and nutrients so you won't have to water and feed as often.

I have been debating whether to return the ones I have and get the 15 gallon size ones. I know I can just not fill them up as much but the size is kind of bothering me.

What do you guys suggest? The 20 or 15 gallon size?

Any one else tried growing in grow bags? There are pros and cons. What has been your experience?

Thanks for any thoughts or ideas.

Mary
I would go with the bigger ones if Gurney says to. They are heavy feeders.
 

seedcorn

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Why worry about how much soil? Plants need moisture ànd nutrients. Use a good liquid fertilizer and water. 2-2.5 gallon container that will hold plant. Good to go. Talk to local fertilizer plant. Black label zinc would be excellent.
 

Alasgun

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Another thing to consider is the actual size of the pots, most vendors tell you the exact capacity. None of them hold what they advertise. And a Vivosun pot is taller and narrower than a comparable smart pot.

i’ve used, 3,5,7,10, 15 and 20 gallon sizes. 20’s are too heavy to move around and shallower than i prefer. So now days it’s 10 and 15 gallon when i use a cloth grow bag.

on a side note the 3 & 5 gallon sizes are perfect for organizing different meat types in the chest freezers.
 

Titan Farm

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I want to try grow bags to grow my zucchini in since I don't have much ground space. The Gurney catalog says to use a 20 gallon size one for zucchini. I got them and they seem huge! They are slightly bigger than my black nursery tree containers.

I have tried googling it and seen some youtubes. Not much info on what size to use. The youtube videos just show large pots. Apparently the bigger the pot they will use less water and nutrients so you won't have to water and feed as often.

I have been debating whether to return the ones I have and get the 15 gallon size ones. I know I can just not fill them up as much but the size is kind of bothering me.

What do you guys suggest? The 20 or 15 gallon size?

Any one else tried growing in grow bags? There are pros and cons. What has been your experience?

Thanks for any thoughts or ideas.

Mary
Apparently the bigger the pot they will use less water and nutrients so you won't have to water and feed as often.
There are a number of reasons for going with a bigger pot.
A bigger container holds more soil which means you hold more water longer and in turn water less often.
A bigger container with more soil tend to protect the roots better on a hot day.
A plant in a larger container will tend to have larger root mass than ones that is grown in a smaller container.
As for feeding less often, that could be if your running a bottled fertilizer and not running a living soil.
When growing in a living soil your feeding the soil not the plant, the soil then feeds the plant and you tend to feed the same amount throughout the the season.

What do you guys suggest? The 20 or 15 gallon size?
You could go with a 15 gallon container but considering how big a Zucchini plant gets I would go with a 20 gallon. I grow everything in a living soil so I tend to grow in big containers and get a better harvest out of a bigger container.

Any one else tried growing in grow bags? There are pros and cons. What has been your experience?
I grow in the cloth pots and love them.
Pros - With the correct soil I grow bigger, healthier and more productive plants in a container than in the earth. With containers your starting with a clean slat, your able to control what your growing in.

Cons-
The only con I can think of is the start up cost BUT that isn't that bad when you figure a good soil mix will last longer than your container. This will be my 6th season growing in the same soil I started with and the soil keeps getting better every season.
 
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