Copper coating on inside of pot for root pruning? ex. Microkote, SpinOut

[Port Farmer]

Curious if anyone has any experience with coating the inside of pots (bonsai, nursery) with this stuff? Supposed to work well for root pruning.

SpinOut | SePRO Corporation

SpinOut Root Growth Regulator stops roots from growing through the walls of containers and other treated fabrics.

sepro.com

MicroKote® - The Root Enhancer

MicroKote® is a micronutrient supplement for container-grown plants designed to improve root system development and micronutrient intake.

www.microkote.com

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Copper hydroxide is pretty water soluble and with our watering style, it wouldn't last long. It would also have the potential to turn the soil toxic, while plants love exploring the container wall before they branch..
My roots prune themselves if the pot gets a little dry, accidentally.
The problem with stuff like this is that most pot holes are in the center of the pot, so if it becomes soluble and drips down, it will turn the sides and the bottom of the pot into a toxic mess. Hydroxide is OH, oxygen and hydrogen, a pH increaser. Generally speaking, you never, ever want to use hydroxide in any soil.

Which reminds me of an awesome study by a NASA engineer who advocated for some silicium products on cannabis youtube channels. The release of silicium was pretty steady, but the soil had a pH increase of 8 points. Silicium is awesome, but no plants survive drain-cleaner-pH-levels above 14 (that is enough to dissolve a human body, including bones and teeth. Wood too.).


Cutting a plant out of a pot, and then coating the pot, and then putting the plant back, kind of skips over the part where the plant is already out of the pot and the roots can be pruned with a scissor in about a minute or two. Faster than it would take to dry a coating. Immediately after repotting, most plants don't require "long lasting root prunes", instead, they need to recover and explore especially the wall vicinity to know where it can bud/branch back those roots.

See the packaging of drain cleaner, I think it mentions not to use it on metals or on rock, because it can eat away rock sometimes. Or the tie-down wires.

I think this product would have its uses, but not in tiny clay or stone containers and not with the watering style and handling we do.

Nice find though! I might give it a try for my ornamental plants.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

I'd have to see it in practice to understand the benefits. The chemist in me would think there would be an issue with alkalinity - and I wonder about the impact on more sensitive members of the soil biome (mycorrhiza for example).

However I can pretty much guarantee you they wouldn't be selling it if it killed plants in containers So let me say I am curious - and am going to go see if they have any product videos out there.

 

[Attmos]

Copper hydroxide is pretty water soluble and with our watering style, it wouldn't last long. It would also have the potential to turn the soil toxic, while plants love exploring the container wall before they branch..
My roots prune themselves if the pot gets a little dry, accidentally.
The problem with stuff like this is that most pot holes are in the center of the pot, so if it becomes soluble and drips down, it will turn the sides and the bottom of the pot into a toxic mess. Hydroxide is OH, oxygen and hydrogen, a pH increaser. Generally speaking, you never, ever want to use hydroxide in any soil.

Which reminds me of an awesome study by a NASA engineer who advocated for some silicium products on cannabis youtube channels. The release of silicium was pretty steady, but the soil had a pH increase of 8 points. Silicium is awesome, but no plants survive drain-cleaner-pH-levels above 14 (that is enough to dissolve a human body, including bones and teeth. Wood too.).


Cutting a plant out of a pot, and then coating the pot, and then putting the plant back, kind of skips over the part where the plant is already out of the pot and the roots can be pruned with a scissor in about a minute or two. Faster than it would take to dry a coating. Immediately after repotting, most plants don't require "long lasting root prunes", instead, they need to recover and explore especially the wall vicinity to know where it can bud/branch back those roots.

See the packaging of drain cleaner, I think it mentions not to use it on metals or on rock, because it can eat away rock sometimes. Or the tie-down wires.

I think this product would have its uses, but not in tiny clay or stone containers and not with the watering style and handling we do.

Nice find though! I might give it a try for my ornamental plants.

What about an Avant-Garde pot made of steel. It's bound to rust, creating lots of crevices and divots in which roots will grow. Will the iron ferrite affect the tree?

 

[Paradox]

Id be concerned with the potential toxicity as mentioned by Wires_Guy. My dogs share my yard with my bonsai and I would not want them accidentally licking up something that could make them sick

 

[EHA]

I have used a product that is a water based paint emulsion sticker containing copper at agricultural research facilities to prevent the seedling roots from penetrating the poly-styrofoam seedling trays. They dont really root prune just make removing the seedling easier and helps with re-using the foam trays. To be honest, I did not see a difference using the product.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

What about an Avant-Garde pot made of steel. It's bound to rust, creating lots of crevices and divots in which roots will grow. Will the iron ferrite affect the tree?

It will. But it's oxidized iron. It's less toxic than copper and it doesn't sway the pH. It's less soluble too and the increase is gradual.

 

[Port Farmer]

Thanks for the responses. Ordered a small bottle to tinker with on some seedlings in nursery pots. See how it goes... seems like it would help encourage a better feeder root system in a smaller container. Potentially keeping the plant a little happier for a little longer (assuming it doesn't kill it first).

The company doesn't have much of a web/you tube presence for being around a while. A couple of wholesalers claim to use it with success in their testimonial section. Found a couple videos of side by side comparisons but neither wash out the root ball to compare.