Cariniana pyriformis is a native arboreal of Colombia with high forestry potential in pure plantations and agroforestry systems of  Theobroma cacao. In an agricultural nursery with plastic cover, production and seedling quality were evaluated with a complete  randomized block design and three replications using three plastic containers (treatments): bags (1700 cm3), tube trays (700 cm3)  and multicellular trays (650 cm3). Between 120 (bags) and 135 (tube trays) days after sowing (das), the seedlings reached 25 cm in height and 3 mm in stem diameter. The shoot dry mass (p= 0.0179) and root dry mass (p= 0.0327) of seedlings at 160 das were  higher in the bags as compared to seedlings grown in the tube trays. In parallel, the production of C. pyriformis seedlings in  multicellular trays achieved quality indexes very similar to those obtained employing the bags, but with a 60% reduction in the cost per seedling.