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Effect of root growth restriction on tree performance

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Posted by onafixedincome z8-9 CA (My Page) on
Sun, Feb 17, 13 at 15:55

I'm talking potted mulberry trees here...What size pot is a reasonable size for a tree that will be pruned hard several times a year for fodder? I want to give this 18" tall plant enough room for roots which will allow it to grow like crazy, but not so much that it is impractical to have 100 pots on the place. The goal is maximum new growth, with half the tree's production being pruned at a time.

I'm NOT planning on planting these out--the pot is the permanent residence, as I will likely need to move them around to the best light/shade areas of the yard. I do plan on placing them into large heavy plastic trays to prevent overenthused root growth through drainage holes into the ground.

The planned substrate is a nice dark and rich sandy clay loam, with amendments of vermicomposted rabbit manure and rabbit manure as well as a bit of fishmeal, blood/bone meals, etc....and a fair bit of DryStall, similar to perlite in texture but heavier, for best drainage.

Suggestions are welcome and actively solicited!! :)

Many thanks, all!

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RE: Effect of root growth restriction on tree performance

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A few years ago, I was considering writing a really good post about container soil and soil drainage. Before I got very far, I did a GardenWeb search and up came THE most read and most commented upon post on this entire website. After reading Al's post, I figured he had already done probably a better job than I would at it. Below is a link to the latest copy of that post. There have been over 2000 responses posted to this series (yes the maximum number of responses has been reached many times over). It will take a while to read it all, but, believe me, the payoff will be HUGE.

Just a few things to keep in mind while you are reading Al's stuff...
1. You will need to repot your trees fairly frequently, so you'll probably want to use the medium that will maximize the time between replants.
2. Drainage and soil texture/structure are a whole different ballgame when we're considering containers, compared to planting in the ground.
3. You'll need to provide proper fertilization, and Al also has a GREAT series of posts about that subject.

Here is a link that might be useful: Container Soils - Water Movement and Retention XVI

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