Effect of nursery container type on trunk diameter and root attributes eight months after planting 57 L container root ball into landscape soil.
| Nursery containerz | 3.8 L visual imprint ratingy | 9.5 L visual imprint ratingy | % trunk circled inside 57 L wall positionx | % trunk circled at 57 L wall positionw | No. radiating straight roots trunk to position of 57 L container wallv | % five largest roots grew into soilu | Root dry mass (g)t |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PC | 1.6 bs | 2.3 b | 18 b | 27 b | 9 a | 55 a | 1029 b |
| SC | 4.3 a | 4.3 a | 62 a | 34 a | 5 b | 27 b | 1247 a |
↵z Trees grown in either porous- (PC) or solid-walled (SC) 3.8 L then 9.5 L nursery containers prior to shifting into 57 L solid-walled containers.
↵y Visual rating of root deflection severity at indicated container position with 1 = little imprint or retained “cage” formed by deflected roots, and 5 = strong imprint formed by deflected roots retaining the shape of the container.
↵x Percent trunk circumference circled with roots >5 mm diameter from either propagation container, 3.8, and/or 9.5 L container position.
↵w Percent trunk circled with roots >5 mm diameter at the position of the periphery of the 57 L root ball.
↵v Number of roots >3 mm diameter measured 5 cm inside the position of the 57 L container wall that grew from trunk at <45 degree angle to substrate surface without making a turn of >60 degrees relative to parent root azimuth at trunk.
↵u Percent of the five largest diameter roots (diameter measured just beyond root collar) that grew beyond the periphery of the 57 L container position following the largest root at forks.
↵t All roots within a 60 cm diameter cone-shaped root ball 60 cm deep.
s Means in a column with a different letter are statistically different at P < 0.01; n = 20, averaged across propagation container type and root pruning due to insignificant interactions.