Jan, I can tell you my take on it, but not about the post you remember.

A plant that fills up its pot with roots cannot be tipped over and have the potting mix fall out--which is what can happen when tipping a loose mix. Then the squirrels cannot dig into it so easy to bury or to look for buried nuts. The critters go for the ones which can be dug easily.

That's what happened to a lot of my smaller hosta last winter, since all were fairly small and the mix was loose. I lost a bunch of them from squirrels.

But, if it is just you putting the pots into an unheated garage where there is no predation, and you do not need to tip the pot, I have no clue about any advantage to root bound. IMHO, they could overwinter rootbound if you are planning to repot them, or put them in the ground the following spring.

I received helpful information from several people about over-wintering in pots on one of my posts. Try searching my name or I think the post title was "Plant Information". Hope this helps!

Thanks tarheelbelle - that was it!

â¢Posted by ctopher_mi Z5 MI (My Page) on
Tue, Jul 23, 13 at 8:54

"Like Ken is saying, don't put a hosta in a pot based on its expected size, but instead put it in a pot based on its current size. You want them to be more root bound going into the winter, at least having some roots down the sides and into the bottom, or you could be faced with dead, rotted hostas come spring if the pots are too big. "

So - I'm still confused as to why the hosta would be more likely to rot if not root bound.

Mocc---your comments about loose potting medium and spillage and squirrels certainly make sense.

Jan

I grow only in pots and it's my guess that it could be one of two things - If the pot is too big, then it would tend to stay wet longer, which leads to rot. The roots down the sides would tend to keep the crown in place. That way, it can't sink.

The transition between winter and spring is about the only time I ever lose plants. The smaller ones are always the ones that I lose. They send up pips, but don't quite make it. I think I over water in the spring. I'm going to do better about that next year.

Also, as Mocc mentioned, the squirrels don't mess with full pots, only those that have loose dirt they can get to easily.

bk

Let me start off by saying I have no hosta in pots.

In zone 5, I would think you would want the pot tipped over in winter to avoid having a block of ice. Frozen soil is ok if the water content is low. This is the logic of the pot bound roots. The roots form a path for the water to flow down and out and prevent the ice cube of death.

tj

All of mine overwintered in pots in my shed. I was rather late pulling them out in spring and found they were sending up pips without having had sun or water since the fall. I don't think any were remotely pot bound having been smaller splits I just didn't have an immediate home for last summer.

I grow several hostas in pots. I overwinter them in my unheated garage so I don't have to tip them over. Plus, it rains so much here in the Fall and even into Winter that outside pots get way too soggy.

I'm wondering if the root bound thing would help with minimizing air pockets in the soil that can freeze, thaw, fill up with water and sit, etc. I know I've had issues with rot when I've moved plants at the wrong time and the soil didn't have time to settle around the roots properly before the weather turned warmer and the soil became drier. Then, when it rained, there was space between the roots and soil that filled up with water and just sat there, leading to rot.

Maybe a pot without many roots in it and a bunch of loose soil would create those same conditions? Just a thought.

This post was edited by flower-frenzy on Tue, Jul 30, 13 at 18:10

Well, Tj, I would never have thought of that as a reason to have root bound pots. Live and learn.

bk