IMHO,
Do it now. less for the diminished root system to support. It can then adjust canopy to fit it's remaining root system. Plus the sooner in the ground, the sooner new roots grow.

Arktrees

i have also been wondering ...

if temps stay back in the normal range.. just do it ...

cold nights.. ought to keep them in slow motion for the most part ... but then you have the whole frost/freeze song and dance ...

your ONLY alternative .. would be to 'hold' them until the next proper planting season ... and with all those risks.. may as well quit worrying.. and just do it ...

it is still MARCH for Gods sake.. proper planting season for you and me.. is still two weeks away ...

ken

Yup, just do it! The fact you are going to do some root work is the only reason to even be a little concerned. Otherwise, that is one of the-maybe the only-good thing about potted stock-the fact you can plant any time soil is workable.

+oM

Done! As expected I had to tear through alot of roots. It still had a decent root set since it was a 10 gallon pot.

Acer is one of the few trees I'll plant from a pot. They seem to have a natural tendency to radiate from the flare (vs. knotting around the flare..pines are the absolute worst).

The two potted Oaks I planted this year where a complete disaster. This is what I had left from a 5 gallon container. After I was done working these I had a gallon worth of roots. Damn I'm starting to hate mail order.

{{gwi:335154}}

Yes, it's a surprisingly tough game. Many reputable nurseries are grappling with the whole "roots" problem. Silver Creek Nursery up in Manitowc, for example, is going away almost entirely from field-dug as well as potted, opting to build their own wooden, rectangular boxes increasingly. They are contract-growing some hybrid larch for a project we're doing in '14, and as of right now, they're going to be trying these in the "root pouch" things like A.M. Leonard is selling these days. It's a semi-synthetic mesh "bag" of sorts, shaped like a pot. I guess I'll know more about this growing method when I see it. But suffice to say, the word is getting out that it's not enough to have the plant appear healthy when it leaves the cooler. Performance post-planting is gaining in import.

+oM

+oM,
From the FWIW category. I on a personal level have been raising trees from seed, bare root trees, and containerized trees and growing them into the fabric pots for the last 2-3 years. I have been pretty successful. The containerized plants have all had the usual issues of circling roots, and planted to deep in the containers. These plants I have literally hacked up the root systems to remove the problems (while completely leaved out), followed by replanting in the fabric root pruning pots for the remainder of the growing season. Results have been good so far, with little to no apparent root circling problems. One issue that I have encountered, is that the fabric tends to drain somewhat poorly at times, so that you can end up with a very wet bottom layer that is ripe for certain disease problems to begin. Some trees this won't matter, for others it can be fatal. In an attempt to try to resolve this, I have taken to cutting multiple ~1-1.5" T shaped slits around the bottom to act as drainage holes for excess water. I do not yet know how well this will work, but I would expect it to an improvement.

Arktrees

Thanx ark. I am somewhat skeptical about the ad copy in the A.M. Leonard catalog stating the whole thing can be planted. Seems we've been down that road before! ;^)

Appreciate your comments about this rather new container option.

+oM