6 Best Cow Pot Biodegradable Seedling Containers For Market Gardens We Love
Discover the top 6 Cow Pots for market gardens. Made from composted manure, these plantable pots reduce transplant shock and enrich soil as they biodegrade.
Every market gardener knows the late spring shuffle: a greenhouse bursting with thousands of seedlings, all demanding to be planted yesterday. While plastic trays have their place, the time spent popping out plugs and washing pots adds up fast. Biodegradable containers promise a simpler path—plant the whole thing, pot and all—but not all are created equal.
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Why Choose Biodegradable Pots for Your Garden?
The single biggest advantage is the near-elimination of transplant shock. Since you plant the entire container, the seedling’s delicate root system is never disturbed. This means less wilting, faster establishment in the garden, and a quicker path to harvest.
For a small-scale operation, time is your most valuable resource. Biodegradable pots save hours of tedious work. You skip the de-potting process entirely and avoid the end-of-season chore of washing and sterilizing hundreds of plastic cells. That’s more time for weeding, harvesting, or just sitting on the porch.
Of course, there’s a tradeoff. These pots are a recurring annual cost, unlike reusable plastic trays that can last for years. You have to weigh the upfront expense against the time saved and the improved plant health. For high-value crops like early tomatoes or finicky ones like cucumbers, the benefits often pencil out.
CowPots 3" Square: Top Pick for Healthy Roots
CowPots are exactly what they sound like: pots made from composted cow manure. This isn’t a gimmick. The manure provides a gentle, porous structure that plant roots absolutely love.
The real magic is in how they promote healthy roots. The walls are permeable to air, which "air prunes" the roots, encouraging a dense, fibrous root ball instead of a tangled, circling mess. When you plant it, the pot breaks down quickly, releasing small amounts of nitrogen and other nutrients right where the plant needs them. This makes them our top choice for heavy feeders like squash, tomatoes, and peppers.
They are surprisingly durable when dry but soften up perfectly when watered, making them easy for roots to penetrate. The square shape also lets you pack them into a tray without wasting space. The only real downside is the cost—they are a premium product, but the results in plant vigor are often worth it.
Jiffy-Pots 3" Round: The Classic Peat Option
If you’ve ever bought a seedling, you’ve probably seen a Jiffy-Pot. Made from compressed peat moss, they are the affordable, widely available workhorse of the biodegradable world. They get the job done without much fuss and are a great starting point if you’re new to plantable pots.
Their main challenge is water management. Peat can act like a wick, pulling moisture from the soil mix and drying out your seedlings if you’re not vigilant. You must keep them consistently moist, especially on sunny, breezy days. If they dry out completely, they can become hard and difficult for roots to push through.
Despite this, their low cost and availability make them a practical choice for large-scale plantings of less-demanding crops. They work well for things like brassicas or lettuces that will be in the pots for a relatively short time before being transplanted into the garden.
Ferry-Morse Peat Strips for Mass Seed Starting
When you need to start hundreds of seeds at once, efficiency is everything. Peat strips, which are essentially a grid of connected peat pots, are designed for exactly this scenario. You can fill an entire strip of 10 or 12 cells in seconds, saving a tremendous amount of time compared to handling individual pots.
These are best suited for crops that grow quickly and don’t need a lot of root space before transplanting. Think onions, leeks, beets, or dense plantings of basil. You can simply tear the strip apart into individual cells when it’s time to plant.
The tradeoff for this speed is durability and size. The cell walls are thin and can become fragile when saturated, so they must be handled carefully. The small cell volume means they aren’t a good fit for plants that will spend more than a few weeks in the greenhouse, as they will quickly become root-bound.
Coco Coir Pots: Best for Moisture-Loving Plants
Start your seeds strong with these 24 organic, plantable pots. They promote healthy root growth with excellent drainage and eliminate transplant shock.
Coco coir pots are made from coconut husk fiber, a renewable byproduct of the coconut industry. Their standout feature is incredible water retention. A coir pot acts like a small sponge, holding onto moisture far longer than a peat pot.
This makes them an excellent choice for thirsty plants like cucumbers and melons, or for growers in hot, dry climates where seedlings can dry out in a matter of hours. The fibrous texture also allows for great aeration, preventing the soil from becoming waterlogged.
However, their water-holding capacity can also be a liability. In cool, damp conditions, they can stay too wet, increasing the risk of damping-off and other fungal diseases. They also break down more slowly in the soil than peat or CowPots, so it’s wise to tear the sides or bottom before planting to give roots an easier path out.
Gardener’s Supply Fiber Grow Pots for Durability
One of the biggest frustrations with biodegradable pots is having them fall apart in your hands as you carry a tray to the field. Fiber Grow pots, typically made from recycled paper pulp or wood fiber, are the solution. They are noticeably thicker and more rigid than their peat or coir counterparts.
This sturdiness makes them ideal for seedlings that will be in their containers for an extended period. If you’re starting slow-growing perennials, woody herbs like rosemary, or overwintering plants, these pots will hold their shape without turning to mush. They stand up to being moved around the greenhouse multiple times.
The price of that durability is a slower decomposition rate in the garden. It is crucial to tear or slice the sides of these pots before planting. If you don’t, you risk the pot constricting root growth for months, effectively stunting the plant you worked so hard to grow.
Jiffy-7 Peat Pellets: A Space-Saving Solution
Storing supplies is a constant challenge on a small farm. Jiffy-7 pellets solve the pot storage problem by compressing the pot and the soil into one tiny, dry disk. Just add water, and they expand into a self-contained seedling starter.
This all-in-one system is incredibly convenient and clean. There’s no need to buy, store, and mix bags of potting soil. They are perfect for starting seeds with a high germination rate, like zinnias or marigolds, where you just need to get them going before moving them to the field.
Their small size is both a strength and a weakness. They are great for starting a massive number of seeds in a very small footprint. However, they don’t provide enough room or nutrition for seedlings to grow on for more than a couple of weeks. Think of them as a nursery, not a long-term home.
Transplanting Tips for Biodegradable Containers
Using these pots successfully comes down to a few key transplanting techniques. The most common mistake is leaving the rim of the pot exposed above the soil line. This turns the pot into a wick, pulling moisture out of the root ball and drying out your plant, often fatally.
To ensure success, follow these simple rules. First, make sure the entire pot is buried below the soil surface. Even a quarter-inch of exposed rim can cause problems. Second, thoroughly saturate the pot in a bucket of water right before you put it in the ground. A dry pot will steal moisture from the surrounding garden soil instead of sharing it.
Finally, give the roots a helping hand. For tougher pots made of coir or recycled fiber, don’t be afraid to gently tear the bottom or slice the sides with a utility knife before planting. This creates an easy exit for the roots, encouraging them to expand quickly into their new home. The goal is to help the pot disappear as fast as possible.
Ultimately, the best biodegradable pot is the one that fits your crops, your budget, and your workflow. Whether it’s the root-boosting power of a CowPot or the sheer efficiency of a peat strip, choosing the right container is a small decision that pays off all season long. It streamlines your planting process, reduces plant stress, and gets you one step closer to a successful harvest.
