Do you have a picture of the damaged pot.

Steve

@christine 5b I could certainly leave it in the replacement pot, and maybe that would be best, at least until summer temps recede. Right now there isn't another "new plant" on the list, and the damaged container is an aesthetic match to the one our Meyer lemon is in, so eventually I would like it back in the original container. But it wouldn't have to be right away if that will stress the tree too much.

Here you go @poncirusguy6b452xx, I'll spare you the details as to how this happened, but I'd like to repair it sooner rather than later to minimize any additional complications.

Travis, I can't see your tree being stressed at all if you carefully take it out of its pot to lay it into another until you fix that one. You live in a very forgiving area where your tree is probably going to do well despite that. I sure would not be afraid of it. Living here in New England I still wouldn't even in the heart of winter at their weakest growing point, if the roots are not disturbed too much) Good luck with it. They are much more reslient than you think they are, especially grapefruit.

Thank you @Meyermike(Zone 6a Ma.), that brings me a lot of comfort!

Repotting stress is a result of fine root damage in the potting process. No damage to the roots, no to little repotting stress. If the root ball starts to fall apart, that's when the roots can get damaged. Maybe you should wait until roots fill the container and hold the rootball together before you mess with it.

Thanks Dave. How long would you estimate that would take, or how could I tell if the rootball is sufficiently established? My worry is that the longer I wait to repair the container, the more it's going to want to stretch apart and I will lose the clean split it currently has.

Travis, even if the soil did fall of the roots or you broke a few, the tree will be just fine. At this time of the year for your area, I would be thrilled to be able to do a re pot even with root disturbance and trimming. I would just do it and let nature in that warm sunny area of yours take care of it. If you do manage to break quite a few roots just stick it in the shade and water well for about a week then back into the sun. Should be just fine)

How did that crack happen? ha

@Meyermike(Zone 6a Ma.) It was a flaw with my design :(

The floor consists of a couple of loose boards (to allow for seasonal wood movement and facilitate drainage out the bottom). They are beveled on ends to match the angle of the container walls. I cut them a little longer than the bottom opening and counted on the tight fit to keep them in place. Well, the soil was apparently heavy enough to push them down further, putting pressure on the walls. On top of that, they got larger from soaking in the water that drains down, creating even more pressure. The combination created enough force to rip the side in half!

That's what I think happened, anyway. I have no way of knowing.

My solution will be to first glue and clamp the split closed, then I will attach some ledges on the bottom for the floor boards to rest on so the soil can't push them down too far again.

Hey,Travis, you defintely are crafty. Great job making that. I would love to see a tree in it. The whole thing as a whole. Thanks )

Be safe

Thanks Mike!

I don't have many pictures of it because it is new, but here is what I have, one of this planter and grapefruit tree alone, and another with both my citrus (the grapefruit plus a Meyer lemon). By the way, I watered the lemon tree this morning and saw the same issue developed with that planter. So, I appreciate you calling me crafty, but thus far my track record is dismal :(. But, I am learning a lot--about woodworking and growing citrus!

I absolutely love them Travis. What a fun thing to do while stuck home if that is what you are going through. You do have a gift and those trees look so classy out there like that. Too bad they had to split. Do you use a plastic liner inside to that the wood does not get moisture?

Thanks for sharing. You must love the way they look too)

Thanks Mike!

I really like the look of the wood planters. I got one fixed up, waiting to do the other. They were a little awkward sitting forward of the patio, I was trying to maximize sun exposure. I've since relocated them to locations with both sun and aesthetic fit 😉.

I do put a plastic liner in there to help the wood. I've thought about switching to garden fabric to help with air flow, but I go back and forth. The wood is white oak and should be pretty resistant to insects and rot. It's the same wood used for whiskey barrels, boat decks, and other wet applications.

P.S., I saw in another thread that you have some expertise with gardenias. Mind if I message you a question or two? I just uprooted a gardenia and moved her to a pot because I thought she was getting scorched where she was in the ground. I'm hoping to salvage this notoriously picky plant.

Nice job and I wish I had talent like that!