University of Florida

Home > Nursery tree production > Root system > Container practices > Root growth in containers > Most roots deflect to bottom

Most roots deflected to the bottom of container

previous imagenext image

tree root system

The original outlilne of the propagation container is clearly visible near the top (left) of this 3 gallon container root ball. Main roots were deflected down the sides of the smaller propagation container and continued to enlarge. New roots did not grow out and away from the trunk. Instead, the root system is largely in the bottom half of the 3 gallon container. Many trees respond to growing in containers in this manner.