Broken pots????

[Nicos]

Yikes- I've just thought about my garden pots in the UK

I recall losing many teracotta pots a few years back when we went away for Xmas week.
Anyone else lost any yet- or maybe we'll need to wait for 'The Big Thaw'???

Is there any way anyone can suggest of rescuing these pots before the rootballs thaw, expand and crack the pots???
Mine have bubblewrap between the soil and pots but I'm now wondering if that's going to be enough..I suppose time will tell!
It'll be interesting to compare notes over the next few weeks as to what worked and what didn't!!

[TPeers]

Even if the pots don't burst due to the thaw you may loose them as they 'shale' in the frost. So far the only 'frost proof' terracotta I have managed to save is the one in the greenhouse - and I'm not sure about that as I don't heat the GH

[Nicos]

They look so pretty in the garden- but what a pain at this time of year eh??? ( and costly to replace too! ) I certainly don't have enough paces frost free to store them in the winter, nor would I want some of the plants they contain inside!
Ah well- poor planning on my part probably!

[TPeers]

Me too! I've got three with bulbs in - heaven only knows if they will survive.

[TonyF]

We bought some last year locally that, we were promised, are frostproof and we paid a lot of euros for them even tho they were in a closing down sale.

So far two of the six have flaked and are going to end up as crocking the other four seem fine.

Nicos, we have started to buy the metal 'pots' and troughs for bulbs and we don't put them out until early March, when the really bad weather has blown over. We leave the rest of them out in the winter, many have lasted for the past four years in weather as low as -8.

[Nicos]

How do the metal ones fair in the hot sun? I have visions of baked roots.

[HayleyB]

I've a big terracotta that's gone bang

[Glutton4...]

I bought my folks a large one for Crimbo - it's been sitting outside their back door ever since!

[SueA]

I've noticed a few of my smaller pots flaking around the top edges, daren't look at any of the big ones & am just waiting for the thaw to see what needs replacing, at least I'll have some broken crocks to put in the bottom of the new ones!