Yooo, THANK YOU for sharing this!! I just bought a half flat of Violas, and quickly figured they were compacted when i tried to remove them. Yep, all of them are nearly this seriously compacted. The bad things is that these roots are so darn small, you cant seperate them by any normal means and save the roots. There are NO vids for this, nor solutions. Dang-it Sir!! Your vid is PERFECT and so now I know what to do with my plants. Thank You Very Much Sir 😁
Damn, I'm just learning about this and I literally just planted a plum krauter vesuvius today...! Well, it didn't look nearly as bad as the evergreen in your video so hopefully it is able to send roots outwards.
I bought a completely pot bound 8ft yew tree turning yellow (less than half price) ... Iv done this method, added horse crap, rotten veg peelings and rusty water + 10 gallon water ... Hopefully it makes a full recovery and lives forever ❤
Thanks for the video. Three years ago, I planted some Murray Cypress trees from 15-gallon containers. The nursery instructed me to loosen to roots a bit, but, being a novice at planting trees at the time, I was not aware to what extent this had to be done. I also did not know to clean around the trunk flare of each tree, so these are not fully visible. Later on I saw a video that used the slicing method you mentioned, where the main roots were teased outwards. The resulting root ball was no longer container-shaped, with some roots having been cut back and the trunk flare visible. Although I did loosen the roots a bit, I wonder if that was enough. The trees won't be very tall, as they are being used as a hedge. They seem to be growing fine, but I am wondering if I should correct anything at this point, even though that they have been in the ground for 3 years. Would the use of an airspade, pressure washer at the lowest setting, or a garden hose and manual clearing be of any use to inspect the root system and correct it? Thank you!
Good stuff. I wish I knew more about root flare, root bound trees, and girdling roots a long time ago. Oh and a Sawzall is ♥️ red. That's a reciprocating saw, like a Sawzall...
Can you give an update on the plant you did this to? I just did this to two Brandon Arborvitea that I bought at Home Depot for $7 each. They are about 6'-0" tall so it was a good deal, until I got them home and saw that they were extremely, extremely root bound. So, not in the greatest shape to begin with but will be curious to see if they survive.
I did this to Japanese maples and Taylor junipers -- all of which were horribly root bound. 1.5 years later, the Japanese maples are flourishing and the junipers are doing OK 😄.
I wish I'd seen your video sooner because I just planted some agapanthus and several bridal wreath and to loosen the root structure I punctured the sides of each plant with the blade of my shovel. Do you think this will be adequate?
I know this is an old video but in case you see this. I saw another method where they air blast the soil away to expose the roots then plant it that way. Is either a better option?
I’ve seen that too with large tree relocation. In the root-bound scenario, you need to get the roots to be straight and extend away from the trunk. I think if I removed the soil from a badly bound root system, the roots would be so intertwined and circular that it would be impossible to straighten them out.
when planting my root bound plant in a bigger pot, is it still necessary to cut the roots loose? I just stuck my root ball from the smaller pot to a bigger pot with new potting mix. Is that okay?
What you did is fine. You can trim roots when potting up but it isn't necessary. The main benefit of this root trimming is when you are putting a rootbound plant in the ground and want to give it a completely different root structure. Trimming like this causes roots to grow outward in all directions, which in the ground is great since it can grow everywhere, helping it get firmly anchored to its new setting. In a pot, having the plant grow a ton of new roots in all directions isn't as advantageous since they will hit the side and start circling soon anyway. It doesn't hurt to prune when potting up, but don't worry if you didn't. However if you have a severely rootbound plant and want to keep it in the same container, you can trim it back like this, or even further, to allow more room for fresh soil and rejuvenate the root structure. It's not too different than pruning the above ground portion of the a plant.
Excellent find. Thanks for this
I did this for the first time this morning. I was afraid to totally shave it but I did use a sawsall to loosen up the roots.
tomorrow is D day for my tree and your technique will be put to test. Great, Thanks
Yooo, THANK YOU for sharing this!!
I just bought a half flat of Violas, and quickly figured they were compacted when i tried to remove them.
Yep, all of them are nearly this seriously compacted. The bad things is that these roots are so darn small, you cant seperate them by any normal means and save the roots.
There are NO vids for this, nor solutions.
Dang-it Sir!!
Your vid is PERFECT and so now I know what to do with my plants.
Thank You Very Much Sir 😁
You’re welcome! Good luck with those Violas!
Damn, I'm just learning about this and I literally just planted a plum krauter vesuvius today...! Well, it didn't look nearly as bad as the evergreen in your video so hopefully it is able to send roots outwards.
I bought a completely pot bound 8ft yew tree turning yellow (less than half price) ... Iv done this method, added horse crap, rotten veg peelings and rusty water + 10 gallon water ... Hopefully it makes a full recovery and lives forever ❤
How is the tree doing now?
Thanks for the video.
Three years ago, I planted some Murray Cypress trees from 15-gallon containers. The nursery instructed me to loosen to roots a bit, but, being a novice at planting trees at the time, I was not aware to what extent this had to be done. I also did not know to clean around the trunk flare of each tree, so these are not fully visible.
Later on I saw a video that used the slicing method you mentioned, where the main roots were teased outwards. The resulting root ball was no longer container-shaped, with some roots having been cut back and the trunk flare visible.
Although I did loosen the roots a bit, I wonder if that was enough. The trees won't be very tall, as they are being used as a hedge. They seem to be growing fine, but I am wondering if I should correct anything at this point, even though that they have been in the ground for 3 years.
Would the use of an airspade, pressure washer at the lowest setting, or a garden hose and manual clearing be of any use to inspect the root system and correct it?
Thank you!
I cut two inches off the bottom and used a hatchet to get the sides and top . I wish I had seen this . I also added a rooot stimulant .
thank you for this, we did the same hexagon cut today
Good stuff. I wish I knew more about root flare, root bound trees, and girdling roots a long time ago.
Oh and a Sawzall is ♥️ red.
That's a reciprocating saw, like a Sawzall...
You forgot the top. Good idea though. I wish I did this on some maples I planted.
Can you give an update on the plant you did this to? I just did this to two Brandon Arborvitea that I bought at Home Depot for $7 each. They are about 6'-0" tall so it was a good deal, until I got them home and saw that they were extremely, extremely root bound. So, not in the greatest shape to begin with but will be curious to see if they survive.
I did this to Japanese maples and Taylor junipers -- all of which were horribly root bound. 1.5 years later, the Japanese maples are flourishing and the junipers are doing OK 😄.
How much die back do you think will happen to it? I did a willow.
Very good 👍
Would you use a course or fine blade in your reciprocating saw to shave the roots?
In the video, I used a coarse blade, the kind used for demolition (2x4s with nails), because it was what I had available 😀. It seemed to work fine.
Thanks for your videos. I am in Greece mid May can I still cut the side of the box like in your example or it is too hot for that ? Thanks a lot.
I’m not good at optimizing for the season. I just do it whenever I need 😂.
I wish I'd seen your video sooner because I just planted some agapanthus and several bridal wreath and to loosen the root structure I punctured the sides of each plant with the blade of my shovel. Do you think this will be adequate?
I think the method you’re describing is the more common method that is promoted. The method I’m showing here is supposedly better based on research.
I know this is an old video but in case you see this. I saw another method where they air blast the soil away to expose the roots then plant it that way. Is either a better option?
I’ve seen that too with large tree relocation. In the root-bound scenario, you need to get the roots to be straight and extend away from the trunk. I think if I removed the soil from a badly bound root system, the roots would be so intertwined and circular that it would be impossible to straighten them out.
when planting my root bound plant in a bigger pot, is it still necessary to cut the roots loose? I just stuck my root ball from the smaller pot to a bigger pot with new potting mix. Is that okay?
What you did is fine. You can trim roots when potting up but it isn't necessary. The main benefit of this root trimming is when you are putting a rootbound plant in the ground and want to give it a completely different root structure. Trimming like this causes roots to grow outward in all directions, which in the ground is great since it can grow everywhere, helping it get firmly anchored to its new setting. In a pot, having the plant grow a ton of new roots in all directions isn't as advantageous since they will hit the side and start circling soon anyway. It doesn't hurt to prune when potting up, but don't worry if you didn't.
However if you have a severely rootbound plant and want to keep it in the same container, you can trim it back like this, or even further, to allow more room for fresh soil and rejuvenate the root structure. It's not too different than pruning the above ground portion of the a plant.
No Eric. It is necessary.
A root that has started to circle will continue to do so even when planted in the ground.
Kitchen knife works just fine lol, but hey if you have power tools any excuse to break te out is fine 😅