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************************************************************* BUTTERFLY YOUR NEW PLANT BY If you have
been gardening for some time you know what I mean when I talk about
“butterflying” your new plant. For those who think I have been out
in the sun too long, I will explain how and why you “butterfly” the
roots of a new plant. To
“butterfly” the roots means to spread out the roots of a new plant
or a transplant so they look like the wings of a butterfly. If you have
a small 2 inch, 3 inch, or even a 4 inch container, just take the plant
out of the container and with both hands pull apart the roots by
sticking your fingers in the middle and pulling. For larger plants, set
the plant on its side and with a sharp knife or pruners, cut through the
root ball about one-third to one-half the distance up from the bottom.
Then spread the roots out gently so they look like the two wings of a
butterfly. If the plant is fairly large sized, and especially for a
shrub, also cut the other way to make an “X” so you have four wings.
Another
way to prepare your plant is to take the plant out of the container and
gently tease out all the fine roots on the edge of the root ball. Work
into the root ball at least one inch. Start at the bottom of the plant
and work your way towards the top. If you do this gently, only a few of
the roots will be destroyed, so don’t worry. Your plant will grow much
better when planted. Make sure you
prepare the roots to grow out into the soil and not round and round in
the hole. This condition of roots continuing to go round and round is
called “girdling”. In time the roots will choke off the plant and
can weaken it considerably, or even kill it. On a shrub this may not
show up for two, three, or even four or five years. On a tree it may not
show up for 10 or more years. The tree or shrub will show symptoms of
smaller leaves, off color leaves, disease, and/or insect problems if you
have root problems. At the garden
center where I work part time, customers have brought in shrubs that
just weren’t growing right or had even died. When the roots were
checked, you could tell that they had not been growing out into the soil
as they were all wound around in a circle. The plant had choked itself
to death. When asked, the customers usually say they just took the plant
out of the container, and plopped it into the ground. Many had also
planted it too deep. Learn how to take care of your plant once you get
it home. Take this article
and make a list of the questions you need to ask the salesperson the
next time you buy a plant, shrub, or tree. Ask questions if you do not
know how to plant and/or take care of it. Written instructions in
addition will help you remember. When I was
helping my son sell plants at the Farmers Market, we always took the
plant out of the container, checked the condition of the roots, and
taught the customer how to “butterfly the roots”. We informed them
on how deep to plant it, how to water it, if the plant liked sun, shade,
or partial shade, and if it needed to be brought inside in the winter The next time
you go looking for a new plant, take it out of the container and check
the roots before buying. If the store won’t let you do this, then
don’t buy anything there. When you check the roots, they should be
white and look healthy. If not, get another plant. Roots are very
important in growing a good healthy plant. Next, check to see if the
roots pack the container. If the container is full of roots we say it is
“root bound”. That is, the roots fill the whole container and it
does not have any more growing space. It is not bad to purchase a
“root bound” plant as long as you correct the condition before you
put it into a larger container or put it into the ground. If it is a
houseplant, you will probably want to put it into a larger container as
soon as you get it home, and after you have corrected any root problems.
Many house
plants can easily become root bound if they are not repotted or divided
every so often. When repotting, look at the roots and see if they fill
the whole container. If so, you can “butterfly” the roots or tease
the roots out, put the plant in a larger container, back fill with the
proper soil or a container mix, and water thoroughly. If you repot a
house plant, the general rule of thumb is to go to a pot “only” one size larger. Thus you go from a 4” container to
a 6” container, from a 6” container to a 7” or 8” container, or
from a 12” container to a 14” container, etc. If you move a plant
into too large a container, the plant struggles and uses all its energy
to fill that space with roots and does not increase its top growth or
expend energy flowering until the roots have done their thing. Gladys
and I have continually encouraged our readers to learn about their
plants so they grow in ideal conditions. You need to know what kind of
soil it likes, how much water it likes and how often, how much
fertilizer it needs and how often, does the plant like sun, part sun, or
shade. If inside, does it need bright light, or will it be ok at the
office where there is very little direct light. Also find out if it can
be divided when it gets big, or if it likes to be root bound. Remember
some houseplants like to be root bound. CLIVIA for example, likes to be
left in its container until the roots get so big they break the
container. AFRICAN DAISY likes
to be root bound and a Christmas
cactus does not mind being root bound. I
very seldom repot my CHRISTMAS CACTUS. You
also need to learn about the plants, trees and shrubs you have in your
yard. How often do they need to be divided if at all, and if so, what
time of year, and how? How often should it be watered and fertilized?
Does this plant need to be pruned? If so, how often, when, and how? For
example, FORSYTHIA, FLOWERING ALMOND, FRENCH LILAC, old fashioned VAN
HOUTTE SPIREA, and most spring blooming shrubs, should be pruned right after they
get done blooming. You have a three to four week window before these
shrubs start setting flower buds for next year. If you prune any other
time of the year you will be cutting off flower buds for next year. Most
of them flower on last year’s growth so they need to be pruned on a
regular basis or they will only flower way up in the top of the plant.
Also remember that some plants like MAGNOLIA
do not like to be pruned at all. Take out only the dead stems. Learn
how and when to prune!!!! Prepare
your plants before planting, then plant correctly, water correctly,
fertilize correctly, and prune correctly. Your plants will thank you. Copyright
2010
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