Hi Tiff,

Can't tell w/out knowing what particular plants are involved. Funeral plants could contain different kinds of plants (I've seen 'em, w/ Peace Lilies, Dracena, Philos, etc.)

Depends on what they are to assess how they'll winter over anyway, irrespective of repotting or not, what types they are (IMO) & if worth doing.

Well we arent REpotting. They are still in the basket they were originally in a year ago from the funeral.

I do know there is a drac.lemon lime
Maranta
Palor palm
A few drac.deremensis
Philo
Dieffenbachia

The second one

The timing could be better. Generally, it's better to wait to repot most common houseplants until around Father's Day. They will have gained some energy due to the longer days, and will recover much faster due to both the higher energy reserves and their ability to maximize their current food production, which is based on photo-period, photo-intensity, foliage volume, and cyclical growth habits.

Pot up anytime. The worst times to repot plants, from the plant's perspective, are late winter and early spring. Repotting at that time ensures a long recovery and an extended period of weak growth, during which the plant is much more vulnerable to insects and diseases of all stripes. It's not so much a question of when you can or can't repot - it's more a question of what's best for the plant.

It's interesting that Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 tells us: To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven;

2 ... a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;"

If they were my plants and the only thing wrong was the tight roots, I think I'd pot up slightly & wait to repot until the middle of June.

Al

The plants arent in a pot right now. They are crammed together in a plastic tray sitting in a basket.

If it's full of dirt/soil/mix/yada yada, it's technically a pot. It should be possible to poke a hole or two in the bottom of the plastic liner (which has likely been preventing it from draining excess water and building up - who knows what from the water - in the soil, hence some yellow tips.) When it next dries well, flush well. That should help it until spring if the decision ends up being to wait.

Removing the dead and yellow leaves would make it look so much better. And, IMO, removing the moss, but that is just MO. The added air circulation that would allow would be good too. Looks like a great window for a plant!

Right but Al said "pot up" . But since they arent in a pot... It isnt potting up... Right??

Hi Tiff!
Looks like a pretty big undertaking there. When I did that Walmart Scheff (I believe in early October) I cut off roughly half of the root mass, and then made two cuts, leaving myself with four equal sections, each holding a stem.
I think some deft cutting on your part will get you where you want to go, as I'm fairly sure there's a big tangle of roots under all that. If pulled apart, you may end up with less roots on some plants than what you wish.
Are you potting up in 5-1-1? Mine all recovered quite nicely.
Anyone else can chime in on this. I know it left the brain correctly, but not so sure it came out of the fingers the same way!

Good Luck..
Charlie

Increasing the soil volume of the planting would be the equivalent of 'potting up'.

Al

Pot away. I've replanted just about everything at all times of the year and nothing seems to mind. As long as you don't break up the rootballs too severely the plants often don't even know.

Hi Tiffer..

This Inquiring Mind wants to know..
How'd ya make out with the Up-pot?

Charlie

Hey Charlie, the repot went very well, I hope. The plants were super tangled amongst each other, so it was like performing surgery being very gentle with the roots and trying to seperate the plants.

The roots looked great on all the plants but some of the plants were dying off because the last two months my friend has been in and out of the hospital battling issues with her intestines, which led to the diagnosis of her having Chrons. She is 29. So with her being in hospital theybwere neglected, ( thanks hubby). I am hoping they will bounce back. The Maranta looked the worse and the peace lily.

Which i have a pic to share of what i found with the roots to the maranta.... What the heck??

Uhhhh... Maybe it's a BOY Maranta?

Charlie

Right!!!! We said the same thing.

Rhizomes?

Charlie, lol.

Tiff, shhh, don't tell anyone..even though when asked I usually suggest repotting late winter/spring, depending on plant/growth, (and honestly believe it's the correct time)but if there's a reason to repot, I do..doesn't matter if it's Dec or July.

But, there's a limit. Dormant succulents, 'bulbs/corms' are not touched.

By your pics, guess you went ahead and repotted anyway..lol. Did you pot each plant in individual containers?

Maranta pic is funny. Maybe Charlie's right about it being a boy...

I hear ya Toni. I felt pretty comfortable with repotting because of the condition the plants were in. I figured by seperating and potting them, it would be better than what they are in right now. Also, wednesday is the one year "anniversary" of my friends pap dying. She took that very hard so seeing these plants get potted she was in tears. Anyway, she has great bright imdirect light in her home so I think they will settle well.

I am very interested about what was on the maranta roots. Might make a seperate thread...

Wiki:

"Maranta, is a genus of evergreen low growing plants native to tropical areas such as Southwest Asia, and the West Indies. The genus is part of the Marantaceae family which also contains other genera such as Calathea and Stromanthe. Maranta was named for Bartolommeo Maranti, an Italian physician and botanist of the sixteenth century. M. arundinacea is cultivated for Arrowroot which is obtained from the roots.

About 20 species are usually recognised. They all have rhizomes and naturally form perennial clumps."