G&G COVER STORY
by Eric Hopper
RootMaker
®
The Three Methods
of Root Pruning
A plant’s root system provides vital access to water and nutrients.
Experienced growers understand that making root production
a top priority will lead to healthier and more productive crops.
Advancements in the products and techniques used to promote
healthy roots within a container, have revolutionized the way
container gardening is done by both hobbyists and commercial
nurseries. Even with all of the advancements, some growers still
use generic plastic potting containers; inadvertently promoting
an unhealthy root structure. This type of potting container only
promotes a circling of roots, instead of a healthy, fi brous, later-
ally-branching root structure.
When experimenting with container gardening in the 1960s, Dr.
Carl Whitcomb grew frustrated with the inadequate root struc-
tures created by the circling of roots within the potting container.
Determined to solve this problem with a complete system ap-
proach, Dr. Whitcomb tested and rejected many designs until
the root-pruning containers he was working on evolved into the
current line of patented RootMaker® products. RootMaker prod-
ucts offer the only complete root-pruning container system for all
stages of growth; from propagation to harvest. RootMaker prod-
ucts offer cultivators a few different approaches to root pruning
and stimulation. In fact, there are three methods of root pruning
utilized by RootMaker® products to aid a horticulturist in creat-
ing the most vibrant root structures possible. The root pruning
methods are air-root-pruning, root-tip trapping, and constriction
pruning.
Tomatoes in RootTrappers
6
www.GardenandGreenhouse.net
July 2019