Repotting Root Bound Nursery Stock

Lesley

Help! Anybody out there have any ideas about this? How do you thin root bound nursery stock when the roots are so thick combing them with a root hook is impossible? Yesterday, I tried for four hours to get two plants unbound(1 Gallon size). I used a hook, I soaked them in a bucket of water. I cut off a little from the bottom. I soaked again and combed again. Finally, I just cut off about one half and pulled them apart gingerly so that I could get soil in the roots and I cut off large roots that I could feel with my finger tips. Then, I placed them into grow boxes and went inside feeling like I didn't know what I was doing and sure that these two would die!

Is there an easier way? Am I doing something wrong? I haven't run into this problem on other nursery stock before.

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Ladybug

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FredL

Hi Ladybug,

I've been doing alot of repotting of nursery stock this Spring and I am very encouraged by what I am seeing. Everything I've repotted looks very vigorous and, in several cases of severely rootbound trees, rejuvinated. What I'm doing, I've done a few times in the past (always successfully) but not on such a large scale as this Spring. Let me tell you about it.

First, the preferred method, as I'm sure is the case with you, also, is to remove most or all of the soil with my fingers and an ordinary dining fork, the tines of which I've bent at a 90 degree angle and am using as a root hook/root comb. This works fine for plants which are not seriously root bound. As you say.

I've had several plants, especially Azallias (my spelling appears to be screwed up, but I'm sure you know what I mean) that are completely. hopelessly rootbound whose roots appear more like an extremely dense section of floor carpeting than tree roots, that are completely impervious to this approach, however. What I do with these plants is based on a method I saw in "Bonsai Today" a couple of times.

First thing, I take an ordinary cross-cut saw and saw off the lower 1/4 of the rootball. No more than 1/3. Then, if I can, I start combing out the roots, which is often now doable. In extreme cases, it still can't be done. What I do if that is the case is to cut out pie shaped sections of the mat with my saw, removing about 1/3 of the remaing root mass in 3 to 5 pie shapped segments which go to as far into the root mass as it would take to reach a cylinder inside the center as large in diameter as the trunk of the tree, or a little more. This may seem to be extreme, but the effect on my trees has invariably been highly successful. Furthermore, it is very quick and easy.

My impression is that this technique is widely used, almost a "Standard Best Practice" among Bonsai Dudes and Lasses with lots of experience. If you try it, I think you will like it!

Fred