Practical, field-tested advice on watering, media, feeding, stepping up and planting out, for fabric containers, plastic aeration pots, propagation trays and FiberCell™ paper plugs.
Healthy Roots, Happy Plants. For commercial growers, landscapers & retail partners. Built on 20 years of air-pruning experience with commercial nurseries.
You already know the problem. Smooth-walled containers send roots to the wall, where they circle, kink and wait to choke the plant years after it leaves your yard. Soggy media starves roots of oxygen. And every crop runs on a tight shift-or-lose-it calendar.
RediRoot containers fix that at the root. Air at the container wall stops each root tip and pushes the plant to branch into a dense, fibrous root system that fills the whole root ball. Better roots in the nursery mean a better plant at planting time, and that quality carries into the field for years.
The change does ask a few things of you. Air-pruned plants drink faster, the media matters more and your irrigation zones need a fresh look. This guide covers each of those, based on what we've seen work for commercial growers over the past 20 years.
Use a coarse, well-structured mix, fill properly and give the walls room to breathe. See Media & potting and Stepping up.
Water more often, in shorter cycles, and keep an eye on nutrients for the first few weeks. See Watering and Nutrition.
Keep plants in air-pruning containers from propagation to finish, and shift on schedule. See Stepping up, Fabric and Propagation.
| Smooth-wall container | RediRoot air-pruning container | |
|---|---|---|
| Root pattern | Roots run to the wall and circle or deflect | Root tips stop at the wall; plant branches into fibrous roots throughout the root ball |
| Water use | Media holds water longer; wet spots linger | Media dries faster and more evenly. Plan on watering more often. |
| Media | Fine mixes are forgiving | Coarser, well-drained mixes work best; very fine media can sift out of openings |
| Shifting up | Late shifts lock in circling roots | Roots aren't circling, which gives you more flexibility. Shifting on schedule still gives the best results. |
| At planting | Circling roots often need to be cut or teased out | Fibrous, outward-ready root ball that's built to establish |
Hand this page to your crew lead. If you only read one page, read this one.
Mark a “sentinel” row of plants in each block. Check those same plants daily so your crew compares like with like.
This is the most common question we get, and the most important habit to change. Your plants aren't sick. They're working harder.
Too dry: afternoon wilt, media pulling away from the wall, light containers by mid-day, crispy leaf margins.
Too wet: rare in RediRoot, but look for slow growth, yellowing lower leaves and media that stays dark and heavy.
Two or three short cycles a day usually beat one long soak. Pulsed (cyclic) irrigation lets water wet the media instead of running straight through.
Give RediRoot containers their own zones. If they share a zone with solid-wall pots, one group ends up too wet or the other too dry.
For #7 and up, and all fabric containers #10 and larger, drip emitters or spray stakes give more even, efficient coverage than overhead.
Lift test containers, check 1–2″ down, and adjust for the weather. Heat, wind and low humidity can change demand in a single afternoon.
| System | Dries | Watering approach |
|---|---|---|
| Prop trays & FiberCell plugs | Fastest | Mist or fog for unrooted cuttings; frequent light irrigation once rooted. Never let plugs dry out completely. |
| Fabric containers (above-ground) | Fast | Drip or spray stakes on larger sizes; extra checks in heat and wind. Group closely in summer to cut wall evaporation. |
| Plastic aeration containers | Moderate–fast | Short, frequent cycles. Overhead works for smaller sizes; move to drip from #7 up. |
| Gro n' Go liners in plastic pots | Moderate | The outer pot slows evaporation. Water like a plastic aeration pot and check the liner, not the outer pot. |
| In-ground fabric | Slowest | Surrounding soil buffers moisture. Water the bag zone directly and mulch the surface. |
Air-pruning containers reward a mix that drains freely and holds its shape. Most commercial nursery bark mixes work well. What you want to avoid is fine material that slumps, crusts or sifts out through the wall openings.
Not with a properly textured mix. A little loss at the openings in the first irrigations is normal. Steady loss means the mix is too fine or wasn't pre-moistened.
With fabric liners inside a plastic pot, the liner does the air-pruning and the outer pot protects it. You keep your existing plastic pots, and handling and shipping stay the same.
Research shows the benefits of air-pruning hold best when plants are air-pruned at every stage, from plug to finished container. A single stint in a smooth-wall pot can bring back the circling you worked to avoid.
Prop trays, Fertil cups & Growcoons, FiberCell plugs
#1–#3 plastic aeration, fabric or Gro n' Go
#5–#25 plastic, #5–#100 fabric
In-ground fabric or plant out
A fibrous root system actively takes up nutrients, and more frequent irrigation can move nutrients through the media faster. Keep your program simple, but measure it.
Since air-pruned plants are less likely to sit in waterlogged media, you'll often see fewer “wet feet” symptoms that look like nutrient problems but aren't.
Open walls that let air in also let cold in. Root zones in aeration containers can get colder than in solid pots, so protect them the way you'd protect any above-ground root system.
Roots that grow through openings are pruned by air, as designed. If they keep growing, something is giving them moisture: soil underneath, a wet mat or a neighboring container. Move containers onto gravel or ground cloth and space them slightly.
Full specs at RediRoot.com/specifications
RediRoot fabric containers and liners are built to be reused, not buried. Always remove the fabric before planting into the landscape or field. See Planting out.
RediRoot fabric is made from recycled material and designed for multiple seasons. Between crops, empty the bag, let it dry, brush off the media, and store it out of direct sun. Rinse with water. Avoid harsh chemical cleaners.
Long-term root architecture is set in propagation. Getting this stage right pays off at every stage after it.
10×20 single-unit trays: 18 and 32 cell. Classic rack & cup systems: 18, 32 and 48 cell.
A FiberCell machine wraps your mix in biodegradable, plastic-free paper to make uniform plugs on site. Paper options last roughly 4–14 months, depending on paper type. FiberCell paper is free of plastics, and there are no plastic cells to wash or throw away.
This cutting came straight out of a RediRoot 1020 tray, with no Fertil cup or Growcoon. The roots hold the plug together on their own.
What you're aiming for: white root tips stopped at the cell or paper wall, with fibrous laterals filling the plug. When you pull the plug, it holds together and the media doesn't fall away. Then it's ready to shift.
A RediRooted plant arrives with a fibrous, outward-ready root system. A few simple steps at planting help it get established quickly.
Soak the root ball an hour before planting. Air-pruned root balls in container mix dry faster than the soil around them.
Slide plastic pots off. Peel away fabric containers and Gro n' Go liners completely. Fertil cups, Growcoons and FiberCell plugs go in whole. Just bury the top edge.
Dig wide, not deep, and set the root flare at or just above grade. No need to slice or tease an air-pruned root ball.
Backfill with native soil, water deeply to settle it, and mulch 2–3″ deep, keeping mulch off the trunk.
Check the root ball (not just the surrounding soil) 2–3 times a week for the first several weeks, more often in heat. Taper off as roots move into the native soil.
Air-pruned roots are already pointed outward and branching. The aim is a plant that settles into the landscape and keeps a sound root structure for years. Outcomes always depend on site, species and aftercare.
| What you see | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Afternoon wilt | Irrigation hasn't been adjusted for faster dry-down; hot or windy conditions | Add a short mid-day cycle; check emitter output; consider drip for larger sizes |
| Media washing or sifting out | Mix too fine; media was dry at potting; strong overhead water | Use a coarser bark mix; pre-moisten; lower overhead pressure. Some loss in the first week is normal. |
| Water runs straight through | Dry media has become water-repellent; cycles too long | Pulse irrigation (2–3 short cycles); add a wetting agent if needed; don't let media dry out completely |
| Roots anchored into the ground | Containers on bare soil or a wet surface | Move to ground cloth or gravel; lift or rotate fabric bags each season |
| Circling roots | Liner grew in a smooth-wall pot; a stage skipped air-pruning | Correct circling at shifting; keep plants in air-pruning containers at every stage |
| Containers blowing over | Light fabric bags; tall canopies; open spacing | Trellis wire, staking or tighter blocks; step up to a wider size |
| Uneven dry-down across a block | Mixed container types or sizes on one zone; edge effects | Re-zone by container type; extra emitters or hand-water edge rows |
| FiberCell paper hard or dry on top | Plugs allowed to dry; paper exposed above the media | Keep plugs evenly moist; bury the paper edge when transplanting |
| Winter root damage | Root zones exposed to hard freezes | Consolidate pot-to-pot, protect block edges, use frost cloth or an overwintering house; water before a freeze |
Slide a plant out of its container, take a photo of the root ball and the top of the plant, and send it to grow@rediroot.com with your mix, container size and irrigation schedule. Our team will help you dial it in.
It depends on container type, size, mix, species and weather, so we don't publish a single number. Expect more frequent irrigation, especially in fabric and in the first few weeks. Begin with extra checks and shorter cycles, then lock in a schedule by day 30.
We don't recommend it. They dry at different rates, so one group ends up over- or under-watered. Zone them separately.
Root tips that reach the openings meet air and stop. That's the air-pruning working. If roots keep growing outside, they're finding moisture (soil, a wet mat or the next pot). Move the containers onto gravel or cloth.
For the best results, yes. Air-pruning gives you more flexibility when schedules slip, but timely shifts still produce the best plants.
A bigger smooth-wall pot only gives roots more distance to travel before they circle. Air-pruning changes the root architecture itself.
Most coarse, bark-based nursery mixes work well. Avoid fine, dusty mixes and field soil. See Media & potting.
RediRoot plastic and fabric containers are built for many commercial seasons. Some growers have used theirs for nine years or more. Store them out of direct sun between crops.
RediRoot containers are made with recycled material, and our fabric is BPA-free. FiberCell plugs use biodegradable paper that is free of plastics.
Remove fabric containers and liners before planting, plant Fertil cups, Growcoons and FiberCell plugs whole, and keep the root ball watered for the first several weeks. See Planting out.
Call (800) 654-2116, email grow@rediroot.com or contact a RediRoot grower specialist below.
That's what RediRoot growers have built for 20 years. If you have a question about watering, mix, sizing or a crop that isn't behaving, reach out. A real grower specialist will help you dial it in.
Chris Murphey · 770-542-7229
Chris@RediRoot.com
