Planting walnuts in pots?

[Consistency]

I'm sensitive to mold spores.

 

[cpp gardener]

Use a dust mask when you have to disturb the soil in the pot.
No, the coarse gravel won't eliminate the perched water table issue. Any layer, no matter the texture, does the same thing. The soil above the interface has to be saturated for the water to move into the next one. Even a column of sand in a mass of clay stays drier than the clay until the clay is saturated.

 

[pepper]

Use a dust mask when you have to disturb the soil in the pot.
No, the coarse gravel won't eliminate the perched water table issue. Any layer, no matter the texture, does the same thing. The soil above the interface has to be saturated for the water to move into the next one. Even a column of sand in a mass of clay stays drier than the clay until the clay is saturated.

Don't roots need oxygen though? Aside from water filtration using a layer of wood chips at the bottom would give small air pockets for the roots like there would be if it was in the ground naturally around tree roots. With a solid bucket of earth even with some chips mixed in there would be no oxygen and it would just continue to compress as it's watered, I would think.

 

[Meadowlark]

would be if it was in the ground naturally around tree roots. .

That's my belief also...make it as natural an environment as possible. Here walnut trees grow right on top of composting wood...in fact you would be hard pressed to find any walnuts growing in soil without large amounts of organic matter.

 

[Consistency]

Use a dust mask when you have to disturb the soil in the pot.
No, the coarse gravel won't eliminate the perched water table issue. Any layer, no matter the texture, does the same thing. The soil above the interface has to be saturated for the water to move into the next one. Even a column of sand in a mass of clay stays drier than the clay until the clay is saturated.

Makes sense.

I ended up just using the potting soil by itself. It contained soil, peatmoss, black humus, small sticks, perlite and the mycorrhizae.

Don't roots need oxygen though? Aside from water filtration using a layer of wood chips at the bottom would give small air pockets for the roots like there would be if it was in the ground naturally around tree roots. With a solid bucket of earth even with some chips mixed in there would be no oxygen and it would just continue to compress as it's watered, I would think.

According to the following article. Roots not getting oxygen is an issue with overwatering.

https://cid-inc.com/blog/root-respiration-importance-and-applications

 

[Consistency]

I'm surprised how fast they grew in just under 2 weeks. The 3" walnut grew a long root but sure is slow in growing a shoot. The 3" walnut is the only one in a 19L pale with five 7/16" holes drilled at the bottom and I will keep it inside by the sliding door.

Is it ok to leave the 5 pots outside at this point or is there a risk of critters digging them up?

 

[cpp gardener]

It depends on how close they are to the door and what the critters are. Some are much bolder than others.