Jackie Dragon wrote:Hi Friends,
I've just taken over a garden project in a desert transition zone east of san diego county. I have about a dozen potted fruit trees of various kinds and was planning to plant them in the fall after they'd gone dormant, and use the summer to prep the soil and irrigation for the orchard. Upon inspecting the trees this spring, some are definitely root bound. I'm a little concerned about leaving them in the pots for another season. Some of these trees are 3 or 4 years old by the look of them and producing fruit (plums, apricots, peaches and pomegranates). Just curious what the permies would do. I'm inclined to stick to the plan and plant in the fall...
I wouldn't leave them another season to become more root bound. If it were me, I would unwind any roots I could, and then take a very sharp knife, slice thru the roots that are bound and can't be separated, starting at the tree and going straight downward. Spread the roots as much as possible to the sides and get them in the ground.