Can I fix "root bound" after planting without loosening roots?

8 years ago

I somehow forgot to loosen up the roots of annuals after taking them from the plastic containers they came in, before planting.

I planted over a week ago and now my geraniums seem to be getting smaller foliage. They seem healthy and they bloom (some) but the leaves are too small - smaller than when I bought them.

I suspect it is because they were root bound and I did not bother to loosen up the roots before planting them in the container bed.

And now the roots cannot quite take up enough nutrients to ensure adequate growth.

Can this be fixed in any way without digging them up and disturbing the container basket ? (it's got several types of plants in it).

Will the roots eventually break free and find their way to nutrients?

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Comments (3)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
8 years ago
planted over a week ago and now my geraniums seem to be getting smaller foliage.

==>>>

im not sure about this .... a week doesnt seem long enough to 'see' this ...

but for sure.. they are stressed due to the process .. and you need to give them some time to get settled in ...

if they were in the ground.. i would say replant them ...presumably.. you can coddle them in a pot/container/basket ...

spreading the roots .. among other things.. is so you can water them properly ... but given the container .. you ought to be able to do that properly ...

on the other hand.. seems like you could call a redo.. and be done with it inside an hour.. and have some level of peace of mind ....

ken
Paul MI
8 years ago
I would agree with Ken ... a week seems an unlikely timeframe to see such a change. If the plants were severely rootbound, I'd probably just dig them up, loosen the roots and replant. Timeframe hasn't been long enough to really set them back.
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dowlinggram
8 years ago
The only cure for being root bound is to loosen the roots. It seems to me that you have 2 choices. Leave them alone and wonder if they'll be OK and if they're not curse yourself for not taking the time to redo the planter.

Or redo the planter now and have the peace of mind of knowing your planter is going to bloom beautifully