Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Rootpruning
Pruning roots can be tricky. Suffice it to say
that pruning roots you can see is much safer
than tinkering with a root system that is in
the ground.
millimeters of each root is the part
responsible for drawing water and nutrients
from the soil. These root hairs are easily
damaged but regenerate quickly in favourable
conditions. It is therefore logical that the
more fibrous the root system (the more roots
there are) the more root hairs will be
produced, thus creating a larger surface area
from which to draw sustenance.
Root pruning is a technique used to dwarf
plants. Removing roots from a plant will
decrease the amount of water and nutrients
available to the plant, and as we all know, the
less we eat and drink the smaller we get!
Rootpruningtotransplantlargetrees
andshrubs
When you wish to move large specimens in
the garden, it is best to plan ahead. If you
plan to move the plant in late winter, it is wise
to prepare the plant the previous spring.
Bare-rooted plants often have broken and
smashed roots that should be removed to
reduce the likelihood of infection.
Whichrootstoprune?
There are a few general types of roots that
plants have during their lifecycle.
Tools
Use a sharp spade or axe.
All seedlings start with a seed root (radicle)
that forms the tap root. This rapidly growing
root anchors the plant in the ground so that
the newly germinated seedling is not washed
or blown away. The humble carrot is the
obvious example of a strong taproot as well as
a food-storing unit for the plant.
Technique
Identify where the drip line is (see
Figure 3.29). The drip line is the area just
beneath the outer edge of the plants
canopy where rain drips off the leaves to the
ground. This region has the highest density of
water and nutrient absorbing roots hairs.
Therefore, this is the region where watering
and manuring is most beneficial. It is also the
place to start cutting roots in preparation for
transplantation. Suckers can occur when
roots are damaged or the plant is stressed.
Generally the taproot does not persist in long-
lived woody plants except some plants
adapted to desert conditions. It soon
branches to form secondary roots to further
exploit the available water and nutrients
where there is still plenty of oxygen in the
soil. All terrestrial plants need oxygen at their
roots, which is why a root system will only
extend as deep as the air can penetrate the
soil profile. The secondary roots branch
again to form more fibrous roots.
Dig around the drip line to a spade's depth
and about 15 cm wide. This effectively cuts
the main feeding roots and promotes root
branching between the cut and the tree/shrub
trunk. Pack this space with well-rotted
compost so that the damaged root ends have
At the tip of
all
of these roots there are the
roots hairs (see page 2). The last few
