The Tropical Fruit Forum
Temperate Fruit & Orchards => Temperate Fruit Discussion => Topic started by: Triloba Tracker on September 22, 2017, 03:33:00 PM
-
Ok, though I have been on this forum for a while and have some knowledge about plants and such, there are some glaring holes in my experience/wisdom because I have only been growing things for 3 years.
So here is my super-dumb beginner's question:
Say you have some potted trees in a soil-less potting mix (bark/peat mix). When you go to plant those trees in the ground, do you:
- gently remove the mix from around the roots so the plant is immersed in the native soil; or
- leave the potting mix intact and just fill around it with native soil
Basically option 1 is bare-rooting the plant. Based on things I've read, i can see benefits to both options. Option 1 would presumably eliminate issues of soil differential in the root zone, water retention/drainage differential with native soil, etc. However, it could possibly damage the root system (though a soil-less mix basically would fall off the roots on its own).
Looking for advice from folks who've done this - as you can see, I have never done it!
-
Personally, I would not remove all the soil. I think it is more risky for the plant. Especially if the weather is hot and sunny, I think the plant is more likely to survive happily this stress if the roots aren't too much disturbed.
That said, I would kind of remove a little of the soil on the sides, and put it at the bottom of the planting hole.
That would be my strategy.
-
If planting paw paw, remember they don't like trauma to roots when planting. I'd leave rootball intact as much as possible. Usually not planting a huge tree anyway. Paw paw likes water so wouldn't worry about planting hole turning into too much of a sink if planting in well drained soil versus thick clay. Most trees we buy from nurseries are in a bark mixture potting soil, we plant tree in ground, and it grows. If all soil falls off roots, we stick them roots in hole and fill it in with dirt/soil, and plant usually does just fine. No worries, man!
-
Avocados hate their rootball disturbed so I leave the rootball intact. The only benefit in removing the soil is to inspect the roots for girdling or J rooting, which will stunt or kill a tree. For example, I had this Pickering in a large Rootbuilder pot for a year or so before the girdling took its toll. Came out of 1 gal. pot from PIN and I missed it.
(https://s26.postimg.cc/y8p5nqnit/Pickering_Root_Dieback.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/y8p5nqnit/)
If the rootball has a severe case of spinout then I take a sharp knife and slice about 1/2" into the rootball, top to bottom, 4 times around. This will terminate that spin out and induce new roots. I do this to most nursery bought trees as a typical practice.
Advice - NEVER amend clay soils with sand or compost, 2. plant deciduous trees in the fall if you can get them then.
-
I would second the not disturbing the roots if it's a pawpaw. The one pawpaw I bare rooted and put into the ground had the roots and stem turn black and very shortly died.
-
It is fine to make a raised bed of other types of soil placed above any non-ideal soil, and plant your trees in that, totally above the native soil line. This is a new topsoil, and no "tub-effect" occurs. Of course this takes a lot of "resources."
-
Most trees if you bare root them they go into transplant shock. If you need to remove the soil for some reason then you wouldn't want to plant it outdoors, you would want to repot it and keep it in intensive care unit section of your greenhouse.
Usually when planting into the ground, i keep the soil in rootball intact. Unless there is some urgent need to trim the root. The less you distrub the roots, the less you shock the tree.
-
Thanks, guys. After more thinking and research (and your input) I’m definitely going to disturb the roots as little as possible.