weight of containers for lillies

[D&RW]

Hi all,

time to divide and repot our hardy lillies. we currently have 6 pots 14 inches square and what maybe 10 inches deep. these are commonly advertised pond pots.

problem is they are too heavy. i'm 61 and have had two back surgeries and lifting those suckers out this time was a bear. i've either got to give up the lillies, forget about dividing and repotting or find an alternative container that doesn't weigh so much.

I guess I could go with more of the smaller size. Seems like that might limit overall growth though.

Lowes sells a cement mixing tub. it's 27 X 14 by about 8 inches deep. I wonder if a fella cut one of these in half and then overlayed the two pieces, zip tied them together, drilled a bunch of small holes and then lined it with newspaper whether that'd work. would it be just as heavy? haven't done the math on the relative volumes.

how about a media change? i've used regular soil mostly in the past, but have seen the aquatic planting media. it seems really light. cover it with a layer of rocks to keep the koisies for munching and add fertilizer pellets. would that be lighter?

all i know is I can hardly even lift the ones we have now and shouldn't be doing it anyway. Something's gotta change.

 

[shakaho]

Try an oil drain pan. I got some at K-Mart for about $2 apiece.

 

[addy1]

Agree with shakaho, my lilies are all in oil pans bought at walmart with some cat litter. Cheap, have a good ridge to grab and not that heavy. They don't need much dirt to grow, some grown them right in the pond water no soil

 

[DrCase]

mine is just a giant root stuck to a pot with rock in it i never do any thing to it

 

[sissy]

They do have the mesh bags to pot in thats what I use lowes sells them and they are made for ponds .They come folded up and you just unfold them and plant .They weigh nothing and are square .I have had a plant in one for over 5 years

 

[sissy]

these are pics of them if it will help I bought them clearance out at the end of the season but they still carry them

 

[j.w]

I'm gonna try and plant mine in a floating nylon(screen replacement rolls) deep centered plant ring this Spring using the black foam pipe insulation from Lowes. Guess they will get all the nourishment they need from the water w/ some help from the goldies

 

[taherrmann4]

I have two of mine in a standard 2 gallon pot with clay dirt in them and they can be very heavy. Last year I transplanted one of mine and used less dirt and a smaller 9x9 square pot with holes in it, would not stay on the bottom kept floating up to the surface so I just used a rock and put it on top of the lilly. I also have a small cypress tree in my pond which is in a 5 gallon bucket about 2/3 full of clay and that is a reall bear to get out of the pond, so I only do it every couple of years. Next time I will not use any dirt just a rock and a pot for my lillies.

 

[D&RW]

good ideas all. I think I'm going to go with the cement mixing tubs. They're cheap @ 5.50 and when cut down will be a good size. To lighten the load I'm only going to use aquatic planting soil and then rather than gravel to keep the koi out, I'm going to use nylon netting. I suspect they'll still be heavy, but hopefully not as heavy. I'll let you know. And I welcome any other ideas.

BTW, those oil drain pans are perfect, but aren't they a little shallow?

 

[mogsie]

considering you are only going to do this once a year, is it not possable to set up an A frame over your pond and lift your heavy pots out with a rope and pulley? ive just placed a stone buddah on the bottom of my pond right in the centre and used this technique to lower it into the water,

 

[shakaho]

BTW, those oil drain pans are perfect, but aren't they a little shallow?

No, they work great.

 

[addy1]

No, they work great.

I have some lilies that I grew last year in them, they did great.

 

[taherrmann4]

This question is for anyone. How often do you take up your lillies, repot them and split them, is this something you do every year?

 

[addy1]

Depends on how well they grow, mine are small, they were in the pond last year it will be a while before I mess with them, young plants

Every two to three years would be more than enough.

 

[DrDave]

Some of my lilies are 15 years old. They are all in pots with nothing more that a few large rocks holding down the root mass. They flower every year and I never fertilize them. That's the Koi's job.