Hi Dave, I used to work I'n a pretty big wholesale nursery & we recycled our pots regularly from the dead pile at the rate of several thousand recycles per year. We always used a chlorine mix & never had further transfer of desease with hardwoods or softwoods, but if we had a known batch of root rot for example, we would fungicide those pots first as an additional measure prior to usage or dumping, depending on the case. But it was probably an overkill. I used to have an extensive bonsai collection, which might be a line of thought if you want your plants to slow down for a while, root pruning & trimming perhaps. You can also use chemical growth inhibitors, we worked with these I'n the 80s & had incredible success with an amassing variety of plants. They reduce growth & greatly Increase budding, & branching development in some species. There is one such growth inhibitor on the market called bonsai. Hope that helps u : ) Steven Queensland Australia Happy Gardening ! >