I really like the 24oz and 160z bottles,The only thing I can add is the smaller the container the more you have to water in the spring.The bottles that have the like "ribbed sides" that you find on some water bottles,are a bit harder to get the seedling out of.The smooth side bottles are very easy to get the seedling out of..
Tom

Thanks, Tom! It looks like we live in similar climates. Do you find that you don't need to water the smaller containers in the winter? Do winter snows/rains and condensation provide all the moisture that's needed until it starts warming up in the spring?

Would spring watering be less of an issue with larger containers?

Would spring watering be less of an issue with larger containers?

Based on my own experience, the answer would be yes. I use gallon milk jugs exclusively and after two years of winter sowing, have never once had to water them. The spring rains can actually be a little nerve-wracking because the growing mix thaws and is already saturated by the time the rains begin to fall. The first year I carried 200+ jugs inside my garage & set them on folding tables to dry out. Second year so much rain fell I rigged up a shower curtain to keep the rain off them after a couple weeks of non-stop rain. Never lost a sprout that I know of to either drought or soaking wet conditions.

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I've tried most every type and size of containers over 6 years. IME nothing tops gallon size milk jugs. Half gallon milk jugs or 2 liter pop bottles are good too.

Shoot for at least 3" soil depth, 4" is even better. Less than that and they dry out too fast.

Also consider what you're sowing and the head room that might be required before transplant. Tiny plants like alyssum can get by with little, but big, tall, fast growing zinnias or tomatoes need room to grow without hitting a roof.

Karen

It all depends on the spring weather. I use many size containers. Last spring we had lots of rain so didn't need to water much. Some springs we have little rain and all containers needed to be watered often with the larger containers staying moist a few days longer than the smaller containers.

I use 12-16 oz plastic cups for a lot of perennials where I don't want to have to disturb roots by breaking up sections into plop and run brownies or where I expect to have a longer tap root develop. When I use the cups, I cut drainage holes in the bottom of each cup. Then I gang the cups up into big aluminum foil catering pans. I cut drainage slits about 1-2 inches up from the side of the catering tray. This way the smaller cup containers, which do dry out much quicker, get watered from rainwater that collects in the catering tray. But the cups will not drown because extra water drains out of the side slits. Occasionally in a hot dry spring, I�ve had to add water

I've always found the plastic fruit clamshells have too many slits and dried out way too quickly once the weather warms.

There are lots of other translucent plastic containers besides milk. Cat litter comes in perfect containers if you know someone with cats or even detergent containers can work as bottoms and you can use press and seal as a translucent top. That's how I seal my plastic cups: press and seal and a rubber band.

I use 16oz styrofoam cups and cover them with dollar store shower liners. I tried the milk jugs and soda bottles but like the cups way better.

Lisa

Granted this is my first year winter sowing. I prepped a bunch of clamshell containers - I used a basket style coffee filter in the bottom of the clamshells. I acutally use coffee filters in most of my patio pots - keeps too much dirt from running out of the pots and leaving muddy spots on my patio.

I also use a lot of clear plastic salad container clam shells. I make a couple of drainage holes and vent holes in them by running a drill and a big bit through them as they are laid out. I use ones that are deep enough for a couple of inches of soil, but I still have to plant them out a little earlier or add liquid fertilzer in the spring because there is less root room.

But these containers do not have the side slits that expose so much drying out space.

The thing I like about the salad containers is that it is easy to pop the tops open if I get an early warm sunny spell. But the tops can be spopped back down when it get cold again without a lot of work. Once the seedlings have leaves and all danger of frost has passed, I tear the plastic lids off completely to save space.