What happens if you don't loosen the rootball of a tree?(from a pot)

[Heruga]

You know one of those potted trees that have been in a pot for a long time and all the roots are wrapping around the rootball, and the general practice is to loosen and straighten those roots so they can grow more smoothly. But what happens if you don't do that? Just sticking the whole tree in the hole as is? Will it kill the plant because the roots can't move?

 

[Chuck]

You know one of those potted trees that have been in a pot for a long time and all the roots are wrapping around the rootball, and the general practice is to loosen and straighten those roots so they can grow more smoothly. But what happens if you don't do that? Just sticking the whole tree in the hole as is? Will it kill the plant because the roots can't move?

It will eventually kill the tree. It will take a long time but as the encircling roots grow and get bigger and bigger the tree will literally strangle itself . And you can't straighten the roots. That would be like trying to straighten out a coil spring. What you do is cut down through the encircling roots on one side.

 

[MaryMary]

Heruga, it's pretty much the same as trying to put a plant in a hole that's not big enough. Same theory, really. The roots need to spread out to make better use of the water and nutrients in the soil.

If all of the roots are concentrated only in that one little area, it'll never get what it needs.

The leafy canopy of the tree is going to keep it fairly dry underneath. (It's a canopy!) With all the roots in a tightly compacted ball, directly under the tree, how will it get water?

As the tree grows, it needs more nutrients. Imagine if I told you - you are not allowed to leave your house to get more food. You can only have what is in your house right now, and then you must go hungry. How long would it be until you starved? So ... Where will the roots go to get food?

Also, keep in mind that the roots are what anchor it to the earth. If the roots spread far and wide, the tree is stronger. If the tree gets big, and the roots are not serving as an anchor, a big wind can rip that tree right out of the ground! (How stable would you be if you had to walk on feet the size of a 3 year olds?)

So, all that, plus what Chuck said.

 

[Esther Knapicius]

@Heruga , dear, the jest I get from lots of your questions is to cut corners. Nope cannot with gardening. You have to do it right from the beginning to be successful, and that might mean and extra several minutes of time. Or your just going to waste money on replacement in the long run and time that the plant will establish itself fully.

 

[Heruga]

Well yesterday I planted a weeping cherry tree like 5ft tall and it came from a pot and the roots were all entangled and wrapping around the whole soil. So I researched before planting and it said you can even go rough when loosening the roots. Is there such thing as going too rough on straightening the roots though? I literally cut every single root that was not straight and wrapping around the rootball, straightened them out with my hand and I put made like 8 deep slashes in the rootball and did an X on the bottom. Did I do this right or was that too brutal for the tree..?

 

[MaryMary]

Yes, of course there is such a thing as going too rough on a root ball!

I wish I had pictures to show you! There are (and I probably do not have the right term for this) "mother" roots, and "spider" roots. The mother roots are the main ones. Thick roots. The spider roots are the little roots, kind of like threads? Don't damage too many of the mother roots.

I probably would have cut - not too deep - 2 slashes, on opposite sides of the ball. Then pull them slightly apart. Gently. Then do your best to unwind the ones curling on the bottom. Then reassess what you have, and make adjustments from there. Take your time, Heruga, and stop trying to rush through things.

Gardening is an endurance sport, so exercise your patience!!!

 

[Chuck]

When a plant in a pot has encircling roots, and that mean roots that are growing in a circle around the root ball or in some cases just root bound, ALL you have to do is make one cut with a very sharp blade like on a box cutter or sheetrock knife. You cut from the top of the soil all the way down to the hole in the container. ONE CUT about 1+ inch deep into the soil. By making more than one cut your're just cutting the same roots into small pieces and cutting roots you don't have to. The object is to keep the roots from growing in a circle and instead outward

 

[Esther Knapicius]

Well yesterday I planted a weeping cherry tree like 5ft tall and it came from a pot and the roots were all entangled and wrapping around the whole soil. So I researched before planting and it said you can even go rough when loosening the roots. Is there such thing as going too rough on straightening the roots though? I literally cut every single root that was not straight and wrapping around the rootball, straightened them out with my hand and I put made like 8 deep slashes in the rootball and did an X on the bottom. Did I do this right or was that too brutal for the tree..?

Wow. just what the other two above said. But reading what you read about "rough" you know that is a subjective word. If it was that tight, I may have let it settle outside its pot inside a bucket of water for an hour. Then in the water --with my hands only start some loosening work around the ball and see what easily could hover outward, cutting shallowly as needed in a couple areas. I hope you dug a nice wide hole for it. did you stake it up?

 

[Heruga]

So what I did was too much? I made like 8 deep slashes to it and cut all the slightly thicker roots that were wrapped around. I should have soaked it in water first... so I guess I pretty much killed it. Is there any chance this tree would survive? Before planting this tree, I watched a youtube video on instructions on straightening tree roots before planting and the guy made like 1 inch deep slashes every 2-3 inches of the rootball which was like 10 slashes in total. And he slashes the bottom of the rootball like 4 times as well. He says that don't worry about going too aggressive because the broken roots will just regenerate. It had quite a lot of views and likes too.
And yes I dug a hole exactly twice as wide but I didn't stake it, I thought I would need to since the trunk is very thin but it seems very intact with the soil so I decided not too.

 

[Esther Knapicius]

And yes I dug a hole exactly twice as wide but I didn't stake it, I thought I would need to since the trunk is very thin but it seems very intact with the soil so I decided not too.

as long as you firmed up the soil after you put it in with your gentle weight, not a hard weight, it should not topple. Now ---the issue is, it is going into summer. So a hose put near it with the water turned on at a very slow drizzle for couple hours during the day would help it.

 

[Heruga]

as long as you firmed up the soil after you put it in with your gentle weight, not a hard weight, it should not topple. Now ---the issue is, it is going into summer. So a hose put near it with the water turned on at a very slow drizzle for couple hours during the day would help it.

Yea what I did was walk on the surrounding soil and added more soil on it if my feet sunk too much. I only put a small amount of soil on the root ball though since I don't want it to suffocate. I also have a hose nearby so I can water that regularly. But do you know if my tree will be ok? After slashing 8 times and cutting all the entangled roots..

 

[Esther Knapicius]

Not sure honey, just wait and see.

 

[Chuck]

Yea what I did was walk on the surrounding soil and added more soil on it if my feet sunk too much. I only put a small amount of soil on the root ball though since I don't want it to suffocate. I also have a hose nearby so I can water that regularly. But do you know if my tree will be ok? After slashing 8 times and cutting all the entangled roots..

A question. Was the added soil basic native soil or was it a mix of a store bought mix with added fertilizers and other nutrients. If so your roots will not want to escape into the surrounding native soils and spread its root zone, because why should it? It has everything it wants right there in a small area so why should it even want to spread its roots? After all you have done your tree will more than likely be OK but it's growth will slow it down quite a bit, but a trees life is measured in years so it will take some time to see positive results. Don't give up on it if it doesn't show rapid growth

 

[Heruga]

A question. Was the added soil basic native soil or was it a mix of a store bought mix with added fertilizers and other nutrients. If so your roots will not want to escape into the surrounding native soils and spread its root zone, because why should it? It has everything it wants right there in a small area so why should it even want to spread its roots? After all you have done your tree will more than likely be OK but it's growth will slow it down quite a bit, but a trees life is measured in years so it will take some time to see positive results. Don't give up on it if it doesn't show rapid growth

Its the leftover native soil that I got from digging out the hole and some compost. I didn't use any potting mix or any of that. I don't exactly remember but I also had some store bought topsoil(no potting mix or any chemicals) and I think I may have put some on the surface too.. but the majority of the soil I used to put back in the hole was native soil+compost.
Ok thanks I was panicking that I might've killed my tree

 

[Chuck]

Its the leftover native soil that I got from digging out the hole and some compost. I didn't use any potting mix or any of that. I don't exactly remember but I also had some store bought topsoil(no potting mix or any chemicals) and I think I may have put some on the surface too.. but the majority of the soil I used to put back in the hole was native soil+compost.
Ok thanks I was panicking that I might've killed my tree

It will be ok. Just don't water it very much. Give the soil a good soaking about once a month or so.