LJ, that haddock root to me is too advanced to try and manipulate, even if left to soften. It would surely break off. There have been some extreme cutting and grafting of roots on Video, but I will not venture that direction as I do not have first hand knowledge of the procedure.

I would just leave it and give it a little more depth to the next pot, so that the roots can grow a bit more vertically over time.

Rick

I moved very large roots on my oldest last winter. I left her out of her pot for well over a month before she softened enough to move much, and then over time added larger and larger spacers (wads of rags) to move the roots apart. It took all winter to complete.

I have not tried with major roots, but good to hear it worked. Probably my impatience with it.

Rick

I thought I had pictures of the plant during the process, but cannot locate them. Here's a picture from 2014 before, and I'll post more that I just took. (they're on my phone) All of the roots originally folded under the plant, and I wanted them to spread. I moved them very little at a time, placed a rag in between them, and then waited and repeated over several months.

Now