Root-bound or Pot-bound Plants

Root-bound Passionate Pink Asiatic Lily

If your container plant is looking less lush, droopy, or if you notice the soil is not holding as much water as it should, your plant may be root-bound. Root-bound (or Pot-bound) plants are plants that have grown too large for its container resulting in matting or tangling of the roots. The roots can "choke" and eventually kill the plant if it is left unmaintained.

I check my plants once a year or once every couple of years depending on how vigorous the plant grows and the size of its container. I deal with root-bound plants in two ways. If I want to keep them in their original containers, I trim back the roots and replant them in their original container. Otherwise, I will untangle the roots and set the plant in a larger pot.


Re-Potting in Original Pot

1. Loosen up the sides of the plant with a hand shovel.
2. Slide the plant out of the pot.
3. Score the sides of the root-bound plant with the edge of the hand shovel.
4. Gently break up the tangled roots.
5. Trim back the roots. I trim back the thick growth encircling the bottom and the sides, but I have never trimmed back more than a 1/3 of a plant's root system.
6. Replant the plants in the original pot.

Upgrading to a Larger Pot

1. Loosen up the sides of the plant with a hand shovel.
2. Slide the plant out of the pot.
3. Score the sides of the root-bound plant with the edge of the hand shovel.
4. Gently break up the tangled roots.
   
5. Replant the plant in a pot that is one or two-sizes bigger than the original pot.