I need to buy a few larger pots and they come as round and square:
   

Is there any difference besides ornamental?
Where do the figs grow better?

As a note, it seems the square pot holds more soil while occupying the same footprint.

Good question - I've often wondered myself.  I have both types but haven't noticed a dramatic difference.  You might think that in a round container the roots would be more prone to circling if the plant needed to be potted up - that could be a disadvantage.  One other consideration is that square pots store might more efficiently in the winter.

I have not seen nor heard of any difference personally. Could be a good long term experiment, put cuttings from the same plant into different shaped containers, treat them with the same soil and care, then monitor any differences in growth and health.

At this time, with the information and experience that I have acquired, I would go with ornamental differences only.

Scott

Do some math.  Figure out the dimensions.  I could be wrong, but I think when I did it for similarly sized pots, the round pots (believe it or not!) actually had 20-30% more volume.  Then it becomes a weight vs amount of dirt question.  More dirt probably means a happier plant.  It also means it'll be heavier to move around. Just my thoughts.

If you put the figs in a square pot the figs will be square.

I vote for round, (from first glance to the theory...) the roots will never have hard time for bending at sharp angles...in round form the roots will continuously go forward in circles. 

[QUOTE=rcantor]If you put the figs in a square pot the figs will be square.[/QUOTE]

I'm going to purchase some container in a mobius strip kind of shape then.  Thus...it will make a never-ending fig.  Right?

Just finished reading Carlie's single node experiment thread in which he planted in both round and square pots. He found the round pots produced bigger plants sooner.

[QUOTE=rcantor]If you put the figs in a square pot the figs will be square.[/QUOTE]


You made me laugh out loud Bob!!!

Weight is an issue with any large pot, even with "lite weight" soil mixes.  When I jump to 25 and 27 gallon pots this year, I'm thinking about building a flat dolly for each one.  It will make the fig shuffle a lot easier every spring and fall. 

Personally, I do like the round pots better, no reasoning.... just like them better.

I agree with rcanter go round

I vote for the pot with the greater square inches at the bottom, more room for roots.

Hey fellas! Last year I grew cuttings and year old trees in both round and square 5gal buckets with identical results so I think it's a matter of personal preference! That being said i read somewhere that if you're planing to plant in ground the scuare pot helps the roots break away from the rootball quicker since some of them point towards the corners!Sooo if you don't mind the square figs knock Yourselves out!!!!
Bob that was awesome lol!

[QUOTE=DaveL]Just finished reading Carlie's single node experiment thread in which he planted in both round and square pots. He found the round pots produced bigger plants sooner. [/QUOTE]

It would seem so but there could be other factors unknown.  Seems better than either square or round is wide and shallow.  These are the original dozen Unk Lake Spur single nodes in the sterilite container.  It has no drain holes, just watered sparingly.  Two of the dozen have kind of taken over but a third is coming on.  These two are nearly double size of the nice ones in round pots.  I don't know if it makes a difference but the mix is all the same for these.

 

In all seriousness I'd go with whichever one has the largest soil volume. 

Thanks, guys, for all you feedback!
I posted a question without much hope (the forum is kind of slow lately) and was surprised to see this lively discussion!

What I got from all this is basically a greater volume is better for figs regardless of the shape, but wider is better than deeper.
With my SoCal crazy summer sun is not the best shape since too much moisture would be lost from the soil surface but I can come up with a solution.
It is nice that the pots come in all colors and shapes.

Speaking of the wider and shallower, it seems the soil mix should be denser for it than for the deeper pots. Or at least be put in layers. For example, the 3/4 bottom is airy and loose while the top 1/4 would be mostly the heavier mulch.

I also noticed that the forum has been a bit slow lately, I figured it had to do with the holidays and other obligations.

What size pots are you looking for?  And do they need to be pretty?

Scott, Pretty - yes ( at least moderately ), size - 10-15 gals. My ideal scenario would be to place them along the Western wall of the house, it is quite warm out there. Even now, in January, the figs there have the green leaves. The area is in between houses and is very suitable for an espalier. I also can cover with a net to ptotect from my nesty squirrels.

Most be nice to not need to bring your pots in for winter.

Thought,

If you have time, you could build attractive pots out of wood then use a liner in them for soil retention, just don't forget the drain whole in the liner.   With custom pots, you can make them the best dimensions to fit your space and the size of your trees. 

Just a thought, plus a fun project and most likely cheaper than "nice" pots depending on what materials you use. 

yes what  rcantor said, biggest volume you can handle, round, square doesnt matter because
itll only be 1 /  -- 1  1/2 seasons in a 1/2 44 gal drum an the pot will be full of roots anyway.

Steve and aaa,

I completely agree with you! I, actually, was thinking about the wooden planters with liners. I have one that I got at a HD last year and I like it a lot.
The biggest plus is a very good heat insulation during the summer. Wood is much cooler than a terracotta and plastic pots.
Even if the pots are going to be full of roots, I will keep the planters of the same size. The room is limited there and if I go with the largest possible size, it will stay like that for long.

I've been looking for large pots myself, never accured to me to just build my own.  I'm glad you brought up the topic, now I'm going to build myself some large pots.

18 X 18 X 18 is 25 gallons.

The formula is Lenght X Width X Height in inches divided by 231 will give you gallons.

[QUOTE=COGardener]I've been looking for large pots myself, never accured to me to just build my own.  I'm glad you brought up the topic, now I'm going tip build myself some large pots.

18 X 18 X 18 is 25 gallons.

The formula is Lenght X Width X Height in inches divided by 231 will give you gallons. [/QUOTE]

Nice! I will keep the formula in mind.
You would probably leave 2-3" at the top and might add a saucer at the bottom (I was thinking about it instead of drilling the drainage holes), so at the end it might be about 20 gals which is a very respectable size.
I need 4-6 planters, that would be A LOT of soil to buy and doing some heavy lifting.

Where do you guys get the good soil in bulk?

Use a square pot.  It will fit better in the square box you'll put it in when you get ready to ship it to me.  Okay, I'm kidding, sort of.  I do use square pots for rooting plants in partly for that reason.

[QUOTE=HarveyC]Use a square pot.  It will fit better in the square box you'll put it in when you get ready to ship it to me.  Okay, I'm kidding, sort of.  I do use square pots for rooting plants in partly for that reason.[/QUOTE]

Yes, I do the same if I know about the shipping ahead of time.
But my question was more about the semi permanent planters for the adult figs. With the Japanese style trimming they may grow there for the years to come. 
I think the square shape for me makes sense, esp. the wooden ones. They will fit nicely along a wall.
I will need to think about the drip line too.

Harvey, where do you buy (if ever) the soil in bulk?

Wide and shallow is probably better for rooting cuttings because excess water evaporates more quickly.  For an established plant in a hot location the deeper the planter compared to the width, the more water it will have in mid-afternoon when the plant needs it most.