Beware what lurks in your shrub’s pot

I recently purchased a Daphne transatlantica “Summer Ice” that outwardly looked beautiful, but what I found when I took off the pot to transplant horrified me.

When I went to transplant it and started loosening the root-bound roots of the plant I found that within that was a root mass the size of a 3″ container (see picture).  This means to me that the cutting taken from the mother plant was grown in a three inch pot, where it was allowed to get root-bound.  It was transplanted into a larger container without the roots being loosened up.  You may ask why this is a problem if the plant looks healthy.  Had I not untangled the whole root mass it is likely that girdling roots would have caused health problems for the plant in the future. A girdling root is a root that grows in a circle around the base of a potted tree or shrub.  As the tree or shrub grows the main stem and the roots enlarge to the point where the encircling root strangles the plant cutting it off from its own roots.

When plants are allowed to grow in a container for too long the roots hit the sides and spiral around.  Unless you loosen or cut the roots they will continue in this pattern even after they are transplanted and not grow out into the surrounding soil.  The plant took well to the procedure and has settled in nicely.  Let me know if you have any further questions about how to transplant potted plants.