Root flares are really just the area where multiple roots originate from the trunk. The typical shape is because of all the roots emerging from about the same level. In some ways...think of a spiral of branches...except upside down. Just as trees, buried deeply, will often develop another root flare, cuttings can do the same thing.

I had some totally awesome pictures for you, but can't find them anywhere now...and it's driving me nuts! You have ruined my night, Ken...I am going to be tossing and turning now trying to figure out what happened to my pictures. Maybe I will find them later.

and it's driving me nuts!

===>> it appears to have been a rather short drive... lol

ken

Ken, far as the structure goes, think about them residential white ash trees we all used to have. Mine had a good number of branches come off about eight foot up. If you spun the trees upside down with the bottom ten feet above ground it would look like a root flare. The flare just occurs where all them branches or roots come from.

Now I dunno about structural changes the trunk of the willows or the cottonwoods must go through to become roots.

Here is a Kay Parris magnolias cutting I planted today. Root flare was obvious on one side...

This post was edited by j0nd03 on Sat, Apr 5, 14 at 15:47

Not so much on the other. It was also buried about 3" too deep in the pot as well. All in all, not bad for a $30 tree from Sutherlands.

Beautiful roots John.

Dax

Total speculation here, but wouldn't darkness, constant moisture and available oxygen determine the likely area of root flare growth on a cutting? Obviously roots are very unlikely to form in sun and dry wind. And wouldn't the depth of the flare be dictated to some extent by the oxygen/moisture availability? Just cogitating (which can be dangerous!).

hortster

"Total speculation here..."

I think you speculated correctly.
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I still never found my awesome pictures, Ken, but they were of trees that had developed two distinct and well-developed root flares (one above the other) after a change of soil level.

Thanks Dax! Wish I could take credit for it ;-)

Hortster, you bring up a good very good point about where precisely rooting will take place. It does make me wonder if my potted tree was planted too deep after it was rooted or if the soil level could have actually been maintained as it was up potted (if it was even potted up since the roots on the flare could easily be traced all the way to the edge of the 2 gallon imprint).

Two other thoughts:

1) I can't help but wonder if some of those roots on the "non-rooted" side could possible girdle the tree down the road. I have also seen some very nice pics of a tree (a deciduous magnolia) self root grafting. I think since it is actual root tissue down there, it should fuse if they ever press on each other. If it were actual trunk, then a SGR issue might well arise.

2) This thing was just about as good as it gets being potted stock originating from a large wholesale grower (Greenleaf). There were some roots that had begun to circle on the outside of the container but once teased out, they went straight and stayed that way. As some have stated in the past, this was fresh spring stock primed and ready to be planted. If this plant hung around in this 2 gallon pot all summer into fall growing roots in a circle, it would not have been quite so easy to straighten out and plant correctly.

This post was edited by j0nd03 on Mon, Apr 7, 14 at 10:25