Houseplant

I have a 35 or 40 year old indoor “orange tree,” maybe about 4.5 foot tall with a spread of about 3.5 feet. It is in a large pot in our breakfast room. After all these years, the plant has become totally rootbound and is starting to depart this world. I do not want to place it in a much larger pot to accommodate its root system. I do not have enough space in the room. Could I lift the plant out of the pot, cut and discard a large portion of root from all sides, then replace that void with potting soil and replace the new ball in the original pot? Or do you have any other suggestions?

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1 Comment To "Houseplant"

#1 Comment By Alisma On 01/01/2017 @ 7:43 pm

Yes, you can root prune your potted citrus tree as you’ve suggested. It is best to also prune the aboveground parts by a similar amount, so that the smaller root system will be able to support them. Please see these articles for advice:

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/hpgen/prune-roots.htm ^[1]
https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/patiocitrus/containers.html ^[2]
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/oranges/pruning-orange-trees.htm ^[3]

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URL to article: https://questions.gardeningknowhow.com/house-plant-5/

URLs in this post:

[1] https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/hpgen/prune-roots.htm: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/hpgen/prune-roots.htm

[2] https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/patiocitrus/containers.html: https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/patiocitrus/containers.html

[3] https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/oranges/pruning-orange-trees.htm: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/oranges/pruning-orange-trees.htm

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