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Harvesting Knit Fabric

In Ground Containers

  • Notice all the fine white roots of this 4 inch diameter Chinese Pistache, equipped to thrive in the landscape.

  • All that remains in the hole after harvest are the bulbous tips of the small roots that were allowed to grow through the fabric.

  • Continue to pull and rip all of the fabric off.

  • After a sharp shovel has cleaned the exterior of soil and small roots, make several cuts with a sharp knife to remove fabric container.

  • For smaller sizes of grow bags such as this Christmas tree, after spading to cut small exterior roots, a simple lever can be made to pull trees. This Christmas tree can then be planting in landscape after the festivities.

  • Tree Bag harvested by using pulling strap and hook on tractor.

  • Another harvest method. Spade around fabric container to cut small exterior roots. When moisture conditions are right, one person can rock this tree back and forth to harvest, though this is usually done with 12 or 18 inch containers.

  • When the tree is fully dormant, field harvesting can be accomplished using a double looped heavy duty nylon strap and hydraulics of a tractor. To avoid stem scarring: make strap tight, spade around exterior, moist soil, and fully dormant.

  • Transplanted into a 60 gallon RootTrapper® for finishing. White coating protects roots from temperature extremes and the interior fabric traps root tips to continue root branching.

  • Closer inspection of root ball shows callous growth of roots as they are unable to expand larger than the openings in the fabric. This causes a swelling due to storage of starches (energy) which will result in many fibrous roots when transplanted.

  • Fabric is removed. Notice the many small roots from the constriction of the fabric container and the fibrous root system that was created by starting this oak in RootMaker® air root pruning pots.

  • Now 5 inch caliper, this large tree went from RootMaker® 32-cells, to 1-gallon, then 12” bag during the first year. Harvested 2 years later, fabric removed, transplanted to this 24” bag and grown 3 years. Actually ready a year earlier.

  • With a sharp shovel, small roots are quickly cleaned off the root ball to facilitate grow bag fabric removal.

  • Shumard oak in 24 inch Knit Fabric In-ground container, about to be harvested with forks of a skid loader.

Grow Bag Removal

  • High quality fibrous root system built by the tree grow bag. Equipped for transplant success

  • Remove all fabric, repeating with the other side if needed.

  • Pull on tree and fabric strips away with external feeder roots.

  • One method uses wide vice-grip adjustable clamps. Once settings are correct, clamp side of fabric to fixed surface.

  • 8 inch Knit Fabric In-Ground Containers with 1 inch diameter/caliper trees. Best time to harvest is when trees are dormant, but can be done during growing season with a high level of attention to water management.

  • To remove container, cut bag vertically, both sides.