Earth Box Roots

TC_Manhattan · February 27, 2018

Last summer was the first year I grew tomatoes and peppers in my earth boxes.

Before this, I used them for beans, peas, and kale, and their roots would disappear from the earth box mix over winter, so it was easy to add new fertilizer and re-use them the following year.

Now I have these boxes that seem to have their root balls still very much present in the soil(less) mix. Do I need to remove them, or can I just pretend they are not there and plant new seedlings anyways? Not sure how to navigate new fertilizer around them, since the roots act to bind everything together in a cohesive mass.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I'd hate to have to empty them and use new Pro-Mix every year. $$.

Thanks in advance!

ginger2778 · February 27, 2018

No need to throw out,it just turns into organic food for the new plants. Just remove any remnants of the main woody stem. It's weird that you still have roots, mine are always gone by the end of the summer, but that is my high heat solarizing period, so maybe that does it.

Worth1 · February 27, 2018

Any dead root is a good root.

Worth

Worth1 · February 27, 2018

Quote:

Originally Posted by Worth1

Any dead root is a good root.
Well unless it has a nematode hotel in it.

Worth

TC_Manhattan · February 28, 2018

Thanks for your thoughts.

Around here, we get subzero temps. over the winter latent period, and not much happens by way of decay, as the contents of the above-ground containers freeze solid long before the in-ground soil does. I pull intact root balls out of my garden beds in early spring as I clear out for the new season, so I can work in some more Plant Tone before the new crop.

Maybe I can use a steak knife to carve out a hole for the seedling plugs. Leave it up to them to work around the remaining tangles. I'm not kidding, I can pull the entire content of the earth box out as one big loaf because the roots hold it all together so.

Never had that problem with beans or peas or leafy veg.

ginger2778 · February 28, 2018

Wow, that's amazing!

edweather · March 3, 2018

I hear what you're saying about the roots binding up the whole container. My container mix is a bit different, but in the spring I dump out the loaf and kind of mash it up a bit, and some of the roots can be removed. I hate to just plant in root filled material, so I try and re-sift the roots out the best I can.

PotGarden · March 3, 2018

I do the same thing as edweather. I get a large sharp carving knife from the kitchen, yank the whole thing out, shake as much soil off the root ball as I can, cut out the large pieces of roots, cut up and put the smaller ones back in the bottom of the box, cover with soil and maybe put in just a few handfuls of new soil to fill it up. If you chop up some of the roots of helps create more surface area for microorganisms to work on breaking them down.

Worth1 · March 4, 2018

My big tub containers all the roots were gone I just flipped the soil by hand.

February 27, 2018	#1
TC_Manhattan Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: Ohio Posts: 457	Earth Box Roots Last summer was the first year I grew tomatoes and peppers in my earth boxes. Before this, I used them for beans, peas, and kale, and their roots would disappear from the earth box mix over winter, so it was easy to add new fertilizer and re-use them the following year. Now I have these boxes that seem to have their root balls still very much present in the soil(less) mix. Do I need to remove them, or can I just pretend they are not there and plant new seedlings anyways? Not sure how to navigate new fertilizer around them, since the roots act to bind everything together in a cohesive mass. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I'd hate to have to empty them and use new Pro-Mix every year. $$. Thanks in advance!

March 3, 2018	#7
edweather Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Southeast GA, USDA 9a, HZ9, Sunset Z28 Posts: 396	I hear what you're saying about the roots binding up the whole container. My container mix is a bit different, but in the spring I dump out the loaf and kind of mash it up a bit, and some of the roots can be removed. I hate to just plant in root filled material, so I try and re-sift the roots out the best I can. __________________ You'll be surprised what you'll never have to do, if you put it off long enough.

February 27, 2018	#2
ginger2778 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Plantation, Florida zone 10 Posts: 9,283	No need to throw out,it just turns into organic food for the new plants. Just remove any remnants of the main woody stem. It's weird that you still have roots, mine are always gone by the end of the summer, but that is my high heat solarizing period, so maybe that does it.

February 27, 2018	#3
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	Any dead root is a good root. Worth

February 28, 2018	#5
TC_Manhattan Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: Ohio Posts: 457	Thanks for your thoughts. Around here, we get subzero temps. over the winter latent period, and not much happens by way of decay, as the contents of the above-ground containers freeze solid long before the in-ground soil does. I pull intact root balls out of my garden beds in early spring as I clear out for the new season, so I can work in some more Plant Tone before the new crop. Maybe I can use a steak knife to carve out a hole for the seedling plugs. Leave it up to them to work around the remaining tangles. I'm not kidding, I can pull the entire content of the earth box out as one big loaf because the roots hold it all together so. Never had that problem with beans or peas or leafy veg.

March 3, 2018	#8
PotGarden Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: NY Posts: 59	I do the same thing as edweather. I get a large sharp carving knife from the kitchen, yank the whole thing out, shake as much soil off the root ball as I can, cut out the large pieces of roots, cut up and put the smaller ones back in the bottom of the box, cover with soil and maybe put in just a few handfuls of new soil to fill it up. If you chop up some of the roots of helps create more surface area for microorganisms to work on breaking them down.

March 4, 2018	#9
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	My big tub containers all the roots were gone I just flipped the soil by hand.