You can keep a citrus in the same pot for longer periods of time if you root prune them before they become too root bound. Containerized plants MUST have enough space below ground so that they can always be developing brand new roots. You see, it is only on the very tips of each root that root hairs exist. And it is only within those root hairs that water and mineral absorption occurs. Older, woodier roots don't function that way. The porosity of your potting mix has a lot to do with how a plant's root system will react/function. The more porous it is, the faster a plant will 'take off'. This is because oxygen is essential to cell division and cell growth. Typical packaged potting soils are often too 'peaty'. They can become water logged, causing roots to be extremely slow to grow or maybe even cause root death. I root prune most of my houseplants and other permanent containerized plants fairly regularly. Some go through the process every year. Citrus, like most woody plants, respond beautifully to root pruning. Afterwards, you can pot it back up into the same container with fresh potting mix.

Well effdeevee, My point was not to offend you either, just to let you know that some people have some eye/brain problems reading all cap text. I think that it is OK to cap some words to high-light them. No, it was not the implied 'shouting' that bothered me; just the plain simple reading that required much more concentration. Somewhat related, a long time ago, a (work) friend of mine sent me an email with an 'eye/brain' reading test. It was a simple, normally written (numbo/jumbo) paragraph. The test was just to read this paragraph once and count the number of times the specific word "if" was quoted... I failed the test. Was told that many people do fail too! Will be interesting if I can find this test and post here! So, please from now on (for everybody's sake), make sure that your 'Caps Lock' key on your computer keyboard is in the off position. Regards, George (NJ).

Hardy plants in cold climates effectively hibernate over winter. Like bears these store energy before entering hibernation and then live off it during the winter, "emerge" in spring in a depleted condition. So when there is cutting of the roots and digging of these plants in spring they are being impacted at a time of the year when they are low in energy. However it is also true that the opening of stem buds in spring is what prompts the growth of new roots from cut root ends. So if dormant plants can be moved right before the tops come to life in spring then new roots will be generated immediately afterward. As with fall planting opportunity for success is maximized by timing it with specific relation to what state the stem buds are in. Winter: Activity minimal or effectively non-existent, depending on how cold it is Spring: Winter stem buds open, new shoots appear and may flower, new roots are formed Summer: Flowering or fruiting may occur, roots grow some Autumn: Fruiting may occur, winter stem buds form, existing roots elongate markedly (60% of annual total) Spring shoot and root growth is caused by the opening of the winter stem buds. Autumn root elongation is caused by the maturing of the winter stem buds. At both times hormones are sent from the buds to the root ends which cause these to grow. For modern, research based information see the print publications of Carl E Whitcomb (Lacebark Inc) - present at colleges with horticulture programs, including my local community college - the print publications and web pages of Linda Chalker-Scott (Washington State University), and the Garden Professors blog.

Phosphorus and potassium are both very helpful for roots (both according to what I've read and what I've experienced with potassium—and according to what I've read with phosphorus, but I imagine it's true). Too much nitrogen can be bad for roots, as can too much water, too little ventilation, diseased soil, etc. When I started plants indoors, I used to give them potassium sulfate, and they would get awesome roots pretty fast. I also did this for cuttings rooted in soil, and for transplants, and it was helpful. I didn't experiment with phosphorus much until I stopped starting seeds indoors. I'm not saying that potassium and phosphorus do what hormone rooting powder is supposed to do, but at least potassium is still helpful for cuttings rooted in soil (it helps them to absorb more water and be less prone to shock—and at least by the time they do root, it helps the roots). I found it to be extremely helpful (both for seedlings and cuttings, but avoid soils with big chunks of partially composted wood chips). I took loads of cuttings in early 2015 with a very high success rate (e.g. tomatoes, watermelon, muskmelons, cucumbers, peppers, tomatillos, etc.) If you give cuttings bright light too soon after you take the cutting, it can stunt and/or wither and/or kill them. Give them at least a day or two of dimmer light. I did pretty large cuttings every time, though (between 3 and 16 inches). Maybe the reason people tend to use younger shoots is to avoid the light issue—but you can definitely take longer cuttings involving older growth. I'd usually take maybe an 8-inch tomato branch, put it in a cup with Nature's Brand seedling mix (with basalt rockdust and some kind of maybe natural 10-10-10 fertilizer added—it was a safe kind for seed-starting and taking cuttings), plant the stem near to the bottom of a 20oz foam cup, and water with water that has a good dose of potassium sulfate in it. Then I'd keep it out of bright light for a couple days, and then put it in bright fluorescent light, or a south window. They generally took a few days (~4 to 8) to root and start growing (for tomatoes; some other things took longer). You don't need hormone rooting powder for the plants I rooted (although you might for some species). If you believe in rooting things in water, it takes some faith to try rooting in soil, but it really is easier (especially in the long run). It's way faster, too. You can have a nice plant in no-time. Just be careful about damping off—you really need to avoid that (it afflicts both cuttings and seedlings). Fresh soil, clean containers, plenty of light (especially 2700k fluorescent light, for some unknown reason, and brighter south window sunlight), ventilation, and a high soil line can help to avoid damping off disease. I'd do a few things differently if I were to take cuttings now (I'd probably experiment with using wood ash instead of basalt rockdust and potassium sulfate, and I'd do some judicious pruning of the old leaves before transplanting the rooted cuttings to the garden; I wouldn't add 10-10-10 fertilizer, because I think it caused more mold or something, although the plants did enjoy it). I would add a small fan to my growing area, and maybe use heat mats where helpful (while keeping the air cooler than I had it). I'd probably give more attention to fewer plants, instead of packing loads of them in close proximity. I'd probably use smaller foam cups (and not start my plants so early). The wood ash could help pests/diseases not be as much of a problem. I used the same soil and amendments for seedlings as I did for cuttings.