TERRACOTTA, tubs, pots, and plaques.

I've not tried painting waterproof sealer on terracotta.
I do agree with your OH, that longevity usually depends on quality, though sometimes there seems little logic between those pots which remain in pristine condition and those which flake away. I have some pots which have surprisingly survived the frosts, and other which have disintegrated.
Fascinating blog. Thank you.

Yes, I love terracotta pots tooSiris....particulalry when they age.
It's funny, my neighbour's dad was chatting to me the other day when I was working in the tiny front garden.he admired some of the plants in my winter pots but then as he spoke he referred to 'nice' glazed, coloured pots. So, I think probably some people don't see terracotta as decorative but I do. To be fair, they probably suited my former garden/home more than this very modern property but I just love them so they will be staying.
And, I don't worry about them cracking etc.....they are so inexpensive compared to some other types of pot that they are easily replaced although, I have a few with cracks that I have continued to use for years.i have never used any kind of sealer so can't help I'm afraid. But, I'm with you....I love terracotta..it has a character!
Personally, I wouldn't have thought sealers to be successful as you'd need to put it on the inside as well as the outside and surely, being in constant contact with damp compost would render it ineffective!??

Very disappointing but you'll not be short if crocks for the bottom of the other containers...

The first picture looks rather like the man who advertises Go Compare? (We saw him on a downloaded Morse programme)

I bet others like me have picked them up to move and the whole thing fell apart !!!

I have Malaysian glazed pots some are over 15 years old tough as old boots and after a good scrub look like new.

Worse time ever I was at a garden center picked up a shrub (golden Yew) about a meter tall in a plastic air pot and to my horror had no bottom to the pot and the whole plant went right through and landed on the floor compost was everywhere , I quickly put in back in and scooped up the compost.... quickly left ( I did feel bad)

Gg

I agree with you about the advert look-alike :)
The last one reminds me of Old Mother Riley!

I like pots of all sorts and was delighted when, a while back, I managed to buy lots of old terrocotta pots that had been buried in the garden of an old house after a bomb dropped on a greenhouse during the last war. Unfortunately some of those have succombed to frost/cold damage.

Ha,ha Stera, Have a plastic tub full of terracotta crocks.
Must have been a columnar plant to slip through you fingers, G-g.
Paul, I was thinking of applying the stuff inside and out it is colourless. We painted the inside of the back inside of our concrete back garage wall with black tanking paint up to about 1ft to stop water intrusion. Might have some of that left, to paint on the inside.
Gee, how lucky to find those, I expect being buried helped to protect them from the frosts, now exposed - oh dear!

Terracotta pots cannot be stored outdoors without having some cracking along the way. Is there anywhere indoors where you could store them?

Thanks loosestrife, it is not the storing, I could put the in the garage. It is when they are planted up during the frosty weather.

Yes, terracotta has to be dried and stored before the cold weather comes and taken out after the cold weather goes.

I do love terracotta, some of the more expensive pots will survive, but obviously the cheaper will fall apart at the first frost, we tend to wrap them in fleece or bubble wrap, and keep them off the ground, usually works, also keep them near to the house, it would take forever to paint ours lol

Thanks for the bubble wrap suggestion Dd, the blog was for you, know you like your planters on your pergola, with the Violas in them.

Yes I loved the planters, not seen any like that before...may have to go to Italy lol

I also think its what compost you use as if its multipurpose it expands if we have any minus temperatures.
less problem with JInnes

Dd, The ones on top of the pillar about 4x the size of yours, they would have to be to contain an Agave.
G-g another useful suggestion, thanks.

Wouldn't want that to fall on me then.....