should i seperate these two guava trees in the same pot?

[rdm]

I received a guava tree cultivar in the mail a month or two ago, I’ve noticed that the large bushy plant is actually two cutting planted together, I can see the two fabric nettings for the individual peat pots used to root them before being set in a larger pot.  I’ve been slowly teasing them apart as one main trunk form a Y and the other forms a single main trunk with the single stem resting right between and against the inner surface of the Y branch, I figured at the very least I need to keep them from resting against each other. I’ve been debating what to do with them, my worry is if I leave them in the same pot like they are even though it’s a fabric pot they will eventually tangle each other to the point of strangling each other. my first thought was to continue to train them apart for another month or two while the roots fill out the 5-gallon pot they are in now, with the eventual intention of basically sawing down between the two main stems cutting the 5-gallon pot down the middle creating two halves containing the root ball of each plant and putting them into their own pots. but I’m unsure if it would be too much trauma to both plants, again ideally it would be done once they form a good large root ball so that each half would be able to support each plants needs until they can resume growing roots.


what do people think? should I keep them as is? continue with the plan to cut them in half? or does anyone recommend any other option?

[W.]

Your plan might work since your guavas are relatively large. I once tried separating two seedlings growing together in the same pot. They were not very old, under a year probably, and smaller than the guavas in your photo. Unfortunately, my efforts at separating them ended up killing both of them.

One thing to note is that, based on what I observed with my two seedlings, the root balls are intertwined with each other; some of the roots belonging to the plant on the right (in your photo) will be growing on the left plant's side of the pot and vice versa. When you cut the combined root ball in half, you will be severing a not insubstantial amount of roots for both plants. But, I think you will still be able to successfully carry out your plan as long as you are able to maintain two intact root ball halves and do not lose any dirt in and around the roots in each half. That way, each plant's remaining roots will not go into shock from a lack of dirt and moisture, even though each plant has lost some roots. I think that is what went wrong when I tried to separate my two guava seedlings; each plant was basically bare-rooted from losing so much dirt, in addition to losing some roots.

That is my two cents, anyway. Good luck.

[rdm]

Your plan might work since your guavas are relatively large. I once tried separating two seedlings growing together in the same pot. They were not very old, under a year probably, and smaller than the guavas in your photo. Unfortunately, my efforts at separating them ended up killing both of them.

One thing to note is that, based on what I observed with my two seedlings, the root balls are intertwined with each other; some of the roots belonging to the plant on the right (in your photo) will be growing on the left plant's side of the pot and vice versa. When you cut the combined root ball in half, you will be severing a not insubstantial amount of roots for both plants. But, I think you will still be able to successfully carry out your plan as long as you are able to maintain two intact root ball halves and do not lose any dirt in and around the roots in each half. That way, each plant's remaining roots will not go into shock from a lack of dirt and moisture, even though each plant has lost some roots. I think that is what went wrong when I tried to separate my two guava seedlings; each plant was basically bare-rooted from losing so much dirt, in addition to losing some roots.

That is my two cents, anyway. Good luck.

ya,i suspect the two are intertwined already at the base, hopefully its main root don't cross over too much, which is why im gonna give them another month or two in order to fill out the pot some more with roots both to provide more roots when it gets cut in half and to hopefully hold the soil and roots together a little better. 

[toadshade]

I don't have any experience with Guavas, but I can tell you now those are so close, I don't think it would work.  They are too big now.  As much as you wouldn't want to hear this or do it, I think you might end up with a healthier plant if you just clip one off and let the other grow. I know.  Terrible decision.  But every time I have tried to do something like that it does not end well.

[rdm]

slowly tightening every day, gonna move to every few days, no wilting or obvious issues so far.

[Timbogrow]

You could just chop the smaller 1 down so you have 1 that's not competing so much. Then you know you get 1 from the deal and just takes a quick snip and done.

[rdm]

had a bunch of...not sure what they were from but a bunch of 2inch flat aluminum pieces of metal, basically every other day i would tap one down between the two trees until they spanned the entire pot separating the two trees into two root balls within the pot. cut the fabric pot down the sides and just placed the two half into new pots, so far no sign of wilting or other major stress. its been about a day since re potting.

[Sandiegojane]

Try watching Gary Matsuoka/Laguna Hills Nursery/Gary's Best Gardening videos on how to "fix" plants. He sells a permanent potting soil, with no wood products that degrade and kill your plants that will keep nursery plants from from dying after a few months or years.

In any case, his videos show how he removes all the soil from a nursery plant using a combination of banging it off, poking the root ball and washing the roots in a stream of water.

Here's one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tkid31SwDU