Bareroot apple tap root query

[seneca196]

Hello,
just got two bare rooted apple trees (m26) which both have extremely long and thick tap roots (assuming a tap root is the largest and thickest) and wanted to know if I should leave them as they are or trim them?

One tree will go into the ground and the other into a very large container. I've read conflicting opinions on trimming and on leaving and wanted to know which option was best for both planting in the ground and in a container (the tap root is too long to lie straight in the container and will have to be bent.)

Also, speaking of conflicting opinions - should rotted organic farmyard manure (garden centre bought) be ok to add to the soil mix for bare root trees. One source says definitely not, as it will burn roots, but another said it will add nutrition and aid drainage. Which would people suggest?

Thanks

[Guest]

Just to make it more confusing some sources say that fruit trees shouldn't have rich soil but never mind.

If it was me I would try to leave the roots as much as possible. Some bending not the end of the world but if it looks remotely pot bound then ideally a larger pot in the first instance trimming in the second. For the container plant you really need to add feed of some sort and garden centre bought manure should be ready to use straight away. Container plants do need more care but it will be a couple of years before both trees get going.

[FB.]

Cutting off roots will severely weaken the tree, especially dwarf trees. Only do it if there is no alternative because roots are the most important part of the tree.

As for adding compost or some fish/blood/bone: there are arguments in favour and arguments against.

[seneca196]

Thanks for the replies. I think I will leave the root alone and add some manure/compost and slow release granular feed to both, making sure it's all well mixed in with the soil.

[Kirk]

I tend to go for the simple male approach (minimal thinking required) I just dig a big enough hole for whatever the root size and shape is and put the damn thing in the hole.

So far it seems to have worked, and it doesn't over heat the brain cells, actually they do not need to even wake up.

How you arrange/group the words simple, male, approach is your choice.

[FB.]

I tend to go for the simple male approach (minimal thinking required) I just dig a big enough hole for whatever the root size and shape is and put the damn thing in the hole.

So far it seems to have worked, and it doesn't over heat the brain cells, actually they do not need to even wake up.

How you arrange/group the words simple, male, approach is your choice.

Yes, if the soil is good then no amendment will be needed even for dwarf rootstocks. If the soil is poor and needing amendment it would have been better to go for a vigorous rootstock anyway, with the bonus that vigorous rootstocks don't need attention either.

I prefer the lazy option - no feeding, no watering and no spraying - but I have to use vigorous rootstocks to achieve this; dwarfs and medium-vigour rootstocks (M27, M26, MM106) just 'runt out' and start to become sickly and poor croppers as soon as I stop the intensive care and they gradually fade away and die after several years. I should emphasise that my soil is 6-18 inches of gravelly sandy chalky loam sitting over several feet of sand/gravel which sits over chalk; the free-draining/porosity of the soil makes it difficult to hold water and nutrients, and being in a very low rainfall part of the country makes it worse.

[seneca196]

For the tree going into the ground I intend to just dig a big hole and allow the roots to spread as much as they like. All the soil I remove will be amended slightly, just to give the tree a kickstart, but it will be slow release fish blood etc. so shouldn't harm.

The issue was really for the m26 in a 90l container. It's tap root is quite long and would need to be bent for it to be accommodated in the container. I thought trimming it would stop it going round in circles and becoming potbound. Also, apparently removing a portion of the tap root encourages a new, smaller series of fibrous roots to form, which may suit containers better. Apparently container trees don't need the anchorage given by large roots. It suits ground trees better. All a but confusing I know.

[FB.]

If it's in a pot the roots will go round in circles eventually anyway - they have nowhere else to go.

Cutting roots off is risky - it takes away its reserves (roots store nutrients for next year), reduces its root area for absorbing water and nutrients the following year (making it more difficult for the roots to supply what the leaves, flowers and fruits need) and the wounds can become infected by root-rotting fungi. Sometimes the shock of losing large parts of its roots causes the tree to just give up and die.

But it's your tree and your risk to take. In good fertile compost in a pot it might not notice. But I would never cut roots off a tree that I was planting unless there was no other option. If you cut off roots you ideally need to cut off a similar proportion of the canopy to restore the root:shoot ratio.

[seneca196]

If it's in a pot the roots will go round in circles eventually anyway

What I suspected all along, but needed it confirming. Ok, it's leave roots alone in both pot and ground and see what happens. Many thanks for the help. Much appreciated.

[BUFFS]

tap root cutting is something I do with bonsai as big roots means tall growth and this stunts the plant, and the smaller roots will feed smaller branches, and it means I can have a 18yr old horse chestnut which is 10ins tall with a good branch structure but I have never thought about doing this to apple/fruit trees as they need all the nourishment they can get as they give us the best of fruits, i probably slightly overfeed rather than underfeed when planting and then they are on their own....

[skeggijon]

Geoffrey Smith always recommended trimming the roots of apple and pear trees immediately before planting, not by much - just about an inch. He said this encourages new root growth.
Being a devotee of Mr Smith, I have always done this and never had any problems.

[FB.]

Geoffrey Smith always recommended trimming the roots of apple and pear trees immediately before planting, not by much - just about an inch. He said this encourages new root growth.
Being a devotee of Mr Smith, I have always done this and never had any problems.

Yes, trimming just a little bit off the tip costs only a small amount of the tree's winter reserves and only a small effect on next year's water and nutrient-gathering ability, and as long as the cut didn't become infected it could result in several new roots growing in place of the one tip which was removed, similar to pruning the above-ground parts to encourage branching.