slip potting

When i slip pot a tree in nursery soil should i use another soil of similar characteristics of should i just use a free draining soil in all cases?

I think I would use the loser soil, it will easier to remove when you have to.

On the other hand, if the soil the tree is in is densely packed or very rootbound, using looser soil around the old rootball may allow the water to flow through the new soil and completely miss the roots. I think you should at least tease out the edges of the old rootball.

JimLewis wrote:On the other hand, if the soil the tree is in is densely packed or very rootbound, using looser soil around the old rootball may allow the water to flow through the new soil and completely miss the roots. I think you should at least tease out the edges of the old rootball.

I agree with Jim.

Ok i will try and loosen up the edges it was very root bound

When you slip pot, be sure to put new soil under the plant as well as on the sides.

depending on the species, I'll (sometimes) insert a chop stick into the nursery root ball and gently rotate/wiggle to work some loose free draining soil into the resultant narrow channel --- no tamping, just gentle circular movements. i do this in a few places to 'perforate' the nursery mud, in the [personal] belief it loosens the root ball a bit allowing some water into the core. but to Jim's point, you need to carefully watch the watering when you mix sub-strates.
i do emphasise this is a species specific move --- for me, amur maples [deciduous trees in general, actually] have responded happily to this somewhat invasive maneuver --- whereas i [now] know better than to even look at a mugo funny.

Haha that makes me a bit concerned as it is a pinus strobus, but it is usually pretty wet around here

Don't be put off by my past foolishness. Let's just say that, even while knowing better, I was overly aggressive reducing the rootball on on a few nursery mugos & lost a couple as a direct result.
Part of the issue was my sloppy pre-purchase root investigation --- what i took for strong root development near the soil surface, turned out to be a nasty tangle of roots that had pushed back up and along the trunk. I decided to clean that up, which lead to disaster. I've finally learned to be REAL sure I know what's going on beneath the surface before buying a nursery tree with bonsai glory in mind.

What part of the rock are you from? It's been too many years since I've spent any time there, but I'll wager you can find some remarkable wild specimens for collection.

St. John's. I want out the other day to see what i could find, mostly larch tho a few good ones on the bogs. A lot of what would probably be literati style trees. i have yet to get a few of the less common trees, aspen and birch in particular. Going to try and find some red pine when the right season rolls around