Can you tell if the Roots are Healthy by Looking at the Leaves ? ?

[St. Phatty]

This is a regen of a Romberry plant - from 2020.

I had transplanted a 2 gallon pot into a 6 gallon pot.

When I went to transplant it into the 30 gallon pot, there was not much in the way of Roots.

The soil in the 30 gallon pot has WORMS, redworms and earthworms. Hoping that will help.

If the top has healthy looking growing tips - in some serious heat - don't the roots HAVE to be growing ?

One of those times when I wish I was growing in a clear plastic pot.

 

[flylowgethigh]

The G x D x OPG I have was in terrible shape. Dry soil, no roots. A big bag of nice soil and plenty of water later, and it is a fine specimin. Don't get cheap with the aloe, roots seem to love it.

 

[40degsouth]

Hi everyone,
l’ve always believed that what’s above ground is reflected by what’s below but in saying this, l’ve had plants that to all intents and purposes look healthy but stall out in too small a pot, or after transplant, when being root bound. This situation seems to prevent plants from growing and developing a properly established root system when up potting.
Some plants have explosive root development and something breeders look for and therefore, the yang is some don’t but either situation doesn’t reflect how the plant would perform naturally in a perfect situation ,when unnaturally forced to grow in a pot.
Tom Hill dropped a thought, when he was about recently, regarding root development, nutrient uptake and excess exudates by a root bound plant. His belief/hypothesis was that it has nothing to do with how root bound a plant is (I’m assuming this is relating to a particular plant, in a particular sized pot that is root bound, rather than up potting into a larger container and trying to coax roots into the medium as we’re discussing here but maybe the problem overlaps and something l have thought about a lot) it has to do with an overwhelming amount of exudate production and build up, retarding and preventing uptake. If this is the case perhaps flushing and microbe dominant teas, in order to consume the excess, are the way forward??? I have played with this before but never really seriously experimented and have trialed things like watering the root zone for a few weeks, particularly focusing on liquid seaweed and then watering out a way from the root zone in an attempt to coax roots into the surrounding media, this, in my experience, is probably the most effective method. I’ve also tried teasing out the root zone at transplant with the same success and method and just a straight transplant into a bed with the thought that moisture equilibrium will be quickly reached, after the initial watering and the plant will be forced to stretch its root zone for water; this is the most effective way I’ve found to plant full terms into soil for fast establishment and limited, if any, transplant shock.
All these trials were effective in that the plants survived and eventually started to grow but a long period of, what can only be described as, transplant shock occurred. I’ve also used this to my advantage in order to slow down growth when up potting plants over winter for cloning timing.
One method I’ve been thinking of doing and really the only one l haven’t tried, which is a citrus grower’s trick, is to continually dunk the root zone into a bucket of water until all the soil comes away, this would also obviously wash all the exudates away as well as totally opening up and hopefully, untangling the roots. Before doing this a pyramid shaped mound is created in the hole, the top of which is just below ground height and also the finished ground height to the plant’s stem; i.e. the point where the ground is on the stem and not above. The stem sits on top of the point and the roots are teased out and placed gently, down the slope as they want to lay. The hole is then backfilled and the bucket is used to water the plant in. As a side note, it’s now being accepted that square holes are superior to round holes, for trees, because the roots spread more efficiently and effectively out of the hole, something I’ve been doing for a very long time.
Cheers,
40.

 

[Dropped Cat]

No. the plant with lackluster roots will grow nicely to a point.

When the root system is compromised, say by root aphids or gnats,
the time lag to symptoms in the plant above ground is usually too late to rectify.

Visual compromise above the soil level is almost always a done deal.

I say grow roots well and the plant will produce the yield you desire.

 

[St. Phatty]

Some of the detail in the first pic was lost when uploading.

This might help.

Thanks for the feedback !


Wonder if there are any studies for how many leaves or internodes one healthy root can support, in different temperatures.

The leaves transpire a lot of moisture when it gets hot.


Cannabis growers in Arizona will have their roots tested this week. Going up to 115 - 119 F.

OK here's another pic.

Update, got a picture in the sun.

The leaves are getting bigger.
It was just 5 leaves but now there's some 7 leaves.

I figure these might be signs that the roots are growing.

Don't know how the plant could be happy looking if it was sitting in the hot sun, and getting by with the one spindly root system I saw when I transplanted.

Temp right now is about 75 and sunny.

 

[flylowgethigh]

Even in a conditioned tent environment, my plants in 10 gal bags take a gallon a day, about 10% of the soil volume. That is what the roots and soil suck up from the SIP bed all by themselves, and unless I top water to add food, the water all goes into the SIP wick, The water uptake may be a good way to gage the root system health.

I have started adding cal-mag plus to the water again, and the lanky SB plants seem to be sucking it up even more.