Fig Trees Like Being Rootbound

[bushdoctor82]

Does anyone know the origin of this claim and the veracity of it?

A typical scenario:

• Root cuttings in a 3” container and wait until roots are circling, then plug it into a 6” container without disturbing the roots, then plug it into a 12+” container for the growing season.
• Root prune after a few growing seasons by 1) hack away roots and potting mix around circumference and bottom of tree or 2) slice up the rootball vertically and on the bottom.

In this scenario, the original 3” plug of roots can still be circling and untouched, even after root pruning. I’ve seen some crazy pictures online of this scenario and have had to take action on one of my trees before it became an issue.

 

[IAK]

I purposely let mine get a little rootbound, not because I think they like it, but to make up-potting easier with minimal transplant stress. The rootbound “plug” happens to most of my rooted cuttings because I use fig pops with Pro-mix HP.

Depending on growth, in the late winter/early spring I will take them out of the pot, shake off all soil and take a hose and wash away any peat from around the original cutting base/roots (ala Netstars/The Fig Grove). I don’t want a very moisture retentive substance wrapped right around the tree. I then root prune/up pot if needed, and fill back in with my potting mix (straight GB soil conditioner).

I have read that one reason (other than being able to headstart or fig shuffle) is that when they get a little rootbound, they will fruit earlier/better. I’m rebuilding my collection right now so I don't have the inventory to test this out, but would be simple enough for anyone. Take a few of the same variety, same age, same size, in pots. Root prune half and leave the other half alone. Circling roots are supposed to be detrimental to growth, but root pruning also gets rid of a lot of stored energy for growth in spring. I suspect hormones play a part in all the scenarios I have mentioned when it comes to growth and fruiting as well. We need people smarter than me to chime in on that.

 

[bushdoctor82]

I purposely let mine get a little rootbound, not because I think they like it, but to make up-potting easier with minimal transplant stress. The rootbound “plug” happens to most of my rooted cuttings because I use fig pops with Pro-mix HP.

Depending on growth, in the late winter/early spring I will take them out of the pot, shake off all soil and take a hose and wash away any peat from around the original cutting base/roots (ala Netstars/The Fig Grove). I don’t want a very moisture retentive substance wrapped right around the tree. I then root prune/up pot if needed, and fill back in with my potting mix (straight GB soil conditioner).

I have read that one reason (other than being able to headstart or fig shuffle) is that when they get a little rootbound, they will fruit earlier/better. I’m rebuilding my collection right now so I don't have the inventory to test this out, but would be simple enough for anyone. Take a few of the same variety, same age, same size, in pots. Root prune half and leave the other half alone. Circling roots are supposed to be detrimental to growth, but root pruning also gets rid of a lot of stored energy for growth in spring. I suspect hormones play a part in all the scenarios I have mentioned when it comes to growth and fruiting as well. We need people smarter than me to chime in on that.

The step you take in removing the original soil prior to final planting is one that I’ve rarely seen mentioned or suggested. That step alone would prevent potential root girdling issues down the line.

My understanding is similar to yours, if not less - I’d also like more knowledgeable members to chime in.

 

[Inflorescence]

I’m not quite sure what info you are looking for… But for the first up-pot you let it get “rootbound” because… most people up pot too soon, it stresses them and they lose their cuttings. You don’t have to do that. But you need to have a certain touch, if you will, so that you do it without killing them.

But the 3” to 6” to 12” is personal choice. I’ve heard people give reasons for it, but none of it checked out in my experience.

Having the original 3” still there happened to me when I used round containers, (though it wasn’t 3” in my case. Different original container choice.) I found that I had to very gently tease out the roots before uppotting, otherwise that would happen and in some cases, seemed to negatively affect growth. This is one reason why I use treepots. I found I could let them get as rootbound as I wanted, but because of the shape and the channels on the sides of the container, the roots will still grow out properly.

 

[bushdoctor82]

I’m not quite sure what info you are looking for… But for the first up-pot you let it get “rootbound” because… most people up pot too soon, it stresses them and they lose their cuttings. You don’t have to do that. But you need to have a certain touch, if you will, so that you do it without killing them.

But the 3” to 6” to 12” is personal choice. I’ve heard people give reasons for it, but none of it checked out in my experience.

Having the original 3” still there happened to me when I used round containers, (though it wasn’t 3” in my case. Different original container choice.) I found that I had to very gently tease out the roots before uppotting, otherwise that would happen and in some cases, seemed to negatively affect growth. This is one reason why I use treepots. I found I could let them get as rootbound as I wanted, but because of the shape and the channels on the sides of the container, the roots will still grow out properly.

I guess I’m looking at the overall long term health of the tree after the cutting is rooted.

Most plants don’t like to have their roots constricted or rootbound, so what makes fig trees different? Are we sacrificing long term health by keeping them in small containers too long?

I understand the reasoning of letting cuttings become rootbound so you don’t shear the roots from the cutting, but again, are we sacrificing long term health of the tree by having a tangled mass of roots in a small container?

As I mentioned, during my last root prune, I had to prune out a large circular root from the center of the rootball that could have become a large issue if left alone - that was only after 3-years. Another reason I believe that you should plant inground as soon as possible to not deal with these potential problems.

 

[BucksCountyFigs]

I’m not quite sure what info you are looking for… But for the first up-pot you let it get “rootbound” because… most people up pot too soon, it stresses them and they lose their cuttings. You don’t have to do that. But you need to have a certain touch, if you will, so that you do it without killing them.

But the 3” to 6” to 12” is personal choice. I’ve heard people give reasons for it, but none of it checked out in my experience.

Having the original 3” still there happened to me when I used round containers, (though it wasn’t 3” in my case. Different original container choice.) I found that I had to very gently tease out the roots before uppotting, otherwise that would happen and in some cases, seemed to negatively affect growth. This is one reason why I use treepots. I found I could let them get as rootbound as I wanted, but because of the shape and the channels on the sides of the container, the roots will still grow out properly.

I’m tired, so maybe I’m just being dense, but can you help me understand?

For the up potting to a tree pot, do you still untangle the roots? or do you disturb them as little as possible, up pot it to the tree pot, and the roots self correct?

Or are they self correcting because you untangled them a bit?

 

[Inflorescence]

I’m tired, so maybe I’m just being dense, but can you help me understand?

For the up potting to a tree pot, do you still untangle the roots? or do you disturb them as little as possible, up pot it to the tree pot, and the roots self correct?

Or are they self correcting because you untangled them a bit?

No, I probably wasn’t being clear, sometimes I forget to add details, which is why the edit button is my friend.

I do not tease the roots at all when using treepots. By their design, you don’t have to. They designed them to work for this purpose.

 

[Inflorescence]

I guess I’m looking at the overall long term health of the tree after the cutting is rooted.

Most plants don’t like to have their roots constricted or rootbound, so what makes fig trees different? Are we sacrificing long term health by keeping them in small containers too long?

I understand the reasoning of letting cuttings become rootbound so you don’t shear the roots from the cutting, but again, are we sacrificing long term health of the tree by having a tangled mass of roots in a small container?

As I mentioned, during my last root prune, I had to prune out a large circular root from the center of the rootball that could have become a large issue if left alone - that was only after 3-years. Another reason I believe that you should plant inground as soon as possible to not deal with these potential problems.

I wouldn’t say that they like being rootbound at all. You’re right, no plant does.

What happens is that many people use containers that are way too small to root cuttings in. So they are faced with having to up pot before the roots have hardened or before the plant has become stable. We say to wait until it is rootbound to stop the over eager ones from doing it as soon as they see one or two roots. It really is more for those new to rooting or for those who struggle with losing cuttings.

If someone was using an appropriately sized pot to root in, they would not need to up pot so soon and they could wait until an adequate amount of root growth, because by that time, the initial roots would have hardened and the plant would be ready.

You do have those who are essentially pre-rooting by using small containers, and they can pot them just fine at an early stage. But I would say this takes some skill or intuition to a degree to be successful with it.

So I would say yes, we can be sacrificing long term health by having a tangled mass of roots in a small container. It is not ideal at all and can cause a plant to not thrive or even lead to eventual death. But it is also a case of where we reap what we sow with our container choices.