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Ask Gwen

March 2009

Philodendron

Question: Philodendron

Danielle from South Carolina writes:

I potted a philodendron in a ceramic pot that will be in the house. I am not sure of the species but it appears to be a non-climber. There was about 3 inches (7.5 cm) of space around the sides (which I filled in with potting soil), but the roots are sticking out a little on top. Will that be okay? Will it settle into the pot? Thanks!

Answer:

Hi Danielle,

Thanks for contacting me. You have done the right thing by filling in the sides with potting soil. It is very important to make sure the ceramic pot has drainage holes as plant roots continually sitting in water will rot and kill the plant.

In reference to your philodendron, I wonder if the roots that are sticking out are aerial roots (roots that grow from the plant stem to anchor the plant). It doesn't sound like this is the case if the plant is a non-climber.

If not, I would take the plant out of the pot and prune the roots. The roots should not be exposed. Root pruning, in this case, means trimming off the roots that are too long and sticking out of the soil. Trim them back only enough so that they fit into the pot and are covered with soil.

I am adding the link to an article I wrote about philodendrons for your information:
http://www.gwenshealinggarden.ca/Foliage_Plants.Philodendron.htm

Danielle’s response:
Thank you very much for responding to my question! My ceramic pot has 2 nice drainage holes on the bottom, and I have a tray under the pot. The roots that are sticking out of the dirt a little are thick roots that almost appear vine like. I am thinking I might have a climbing variety after reading more about them. I bought it from Lowe's. It looks like the picture on page 1 of the attachment. I tried covering the other roots with as much dirt as possible. I was hoping that the plant would settle into the pot. Someone else has advised me to wait until spring to see if has settled in. If it has not, remove the plant & cut a little off the bottom of the root ball. Then re-pot it into the same pot. Does that sound like a good idea to you?

When you mention root pruning below (trimming off the roots that are too long and sticking out of the soil), do you mean trimming roots off the bottom or the top? Thanks again for your help, Danielle

Hi Danielle,
What a great idea to send me a picture. I think they are aerial roots and I would suggest leaving them alone. You can tuck them into the soil where they will grow the same as the other roots and provide support to the plant. Don't cut them off.

As long as you patted down the soil to pack it around the root ball, the plant will settle in nicely. The other thing when transplanting is to water thoroughly which will remove any air pockets that are trapped in the soil. You will know if the plant is okay when it starts to grow new leaves. Plants usually recover from the shock of transplanting within 2 - 4 weeks.

The advice about cutting off the root ball is good and you can do that when you have a plant that is root-bound and you don't want to move it into a larger pot. I don't think that will be necessary for your plant from what you have told me.

I have a 10-foot (3.05 metres) Weeping Fig and can barely lift it to move. I never move it into a larger pot, but do as your friend suggests and cut off 2 inches (5 cm) from the bottom of the root ball and re-pot in the same pot with fresh soil.

The roots I was talking about refer to the bottom root ball.

Let me know how your plant is doing.

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