Using aluminum plate for the bottom of a pot.....?

[Wee]

I'm thinking about making some larger pots with 3/4" granite for sides but they will be heavy....Could I use 1/8" aluminum plate for the bottoms....? I'm asking from a health of the trees stand point not constructability.

Brian

 

[M. Frary]

I don't honestly know. But that's a good question because I've got a tree in an aluminum commander. I didn't think about aluminum being bad for it. Maybe someone with some knowledge about this will reply.

Mike Frary

 

[Stan Kengai]

I'll let you read and decide.

http://www.plantphysiol.org/content/107/2/315.full.pdf

 

[prestontolbert]

What about using stainless? Or just plain steel? I know Walter Pall has used cast iron bonsai pots.
-PT

 

[Poink88]

I'm thinking about making some larger pots with 3/4" granite for sides but they will be heavy....

What is your motivation for doing this? (cost, efficiency, uniqueness, experiment, etc.?) Just wondering.

 

[Wee]

Cost mostly....I have been in the stone business for almost 25 years so other than the plate I would have zero $ in them and would have plenty of different stones to choose from. I could also build them any size I needed.

I could use stainless but it's a real pain to drill and not cheap either. I don't think I would want to deal with all the rust if I used plain steel.


Brian

 

[Mac In Oak Ridge]

If your design allowed the replacement of the aluminum bottom I think it would work. I have used aluminum wire to hold plants in a pot and the aluminum rots away in one season, I think the elements in fertilizer dissolve it.

 

[cmeg1]

All I had to see was aluminum toxicity in Stan's post.

 

[Cadillactaste]

What about slate? I know they use them for cheese boards. Not strong enough maybe? Buying a slate cheese board for a gift...just thought I would toss it out there. Again maybe a deep rooted blonde moment. I would love to see some of your finished pots when they are done.

 

[gergwebber]

What about slats of wood or bamboo or pvc under a stainless screen? They would be lite, cheap and readily available. just leave a little lip around the bottom edge of the slabs.

Please share pics and insight on construction. When I was working at a rock yard I thought of this often while cutting veneer with a 24" rock saw, but have never made it happen.

 

[Wee]

Thanks for the feedback..... Maybe some 1/4" or 3/8" thick plastic would make for a better bottom than aluminum. I was only thinking of a very simple rectangle design 16" X 8" x 3" deep, sides could be 90 deg or tilted out some.

After looking at some of the nicer pots I'm wondering if there would be any interest in solid stone pots with traditional shapes....?

Brian