Hoping to add a touch of the tropics to your indoor garden? Look no further than the Bird of Paradise. This plant is prized for its unique flowers, which resemble the plumes of an exotic bird, and are commonly found in vibrant shades of yellow, orange, and white. Since Bird of Paradise can be slow to bloom indoors, one popular technique to encourage flowering results in a “rootbound” plant. But what does it mean for a plant to be root bound, and why does it encourage blooms?
Root binding refers to the process of allowing your Bird of Paradise to become slightly cramped in its current container. As a result, your plant’s roots will run out of room, growing in a tight cluster beneath the soil. Although the stress created by being rootbound can help some plants, like Bird of Paradise, produce blooms indoors, it is not an ideal condition for long-term health.
Wondering whether you should let your Bird or Paradise become rootbound? Keep reading, and we’ll cover the pros and cons of rootbound plants, plus how root binding impacts your Bird of Paradise plant and how to know when repotting is required.
Should You Allow Your Bird of Paradise to Be Rootbound
Ultimately, whether you allow your plant to become rootbound is a personal choice. However, most plant experts would suggest that the best conditions for your plant’s long-term health are those that mirror its native environment.
In the wild, Bird of Paradise is a tropical plant that, when provided with adequate light, heat, and humidity, can flourish into lush, flowering bushes. These plants can achieve a size of 6 feet tall and four feet wide, with average leaves reaching 18 inches in length.
When mature, these plants are truly substantial and need adequate space to thrive and spread their roots. In nature, they’ve got plenty of room to continue growing. Indoors, however, they’re restricted to the size of pot they’re planted in.
Bird of Paradise grows more quickly in height than it does in producing new leaves and blooms. As a result, Bird of Paradise owners may be willing to try almost anything to encourage their plant to produce its signature flowers.
Since allowing the plant to become rootbound can result in the production of flowers, some Bird of Paradise owners adopt this strategy, unaware of the potential health issues that can result down the road.
The Effect of Being Rootbound on Your Plant
You might be wondering, “Why does being rootbound cause Bird of Paradise to bloom?” The short answer is that being rootbound results in stress to the plant. And if the relationship between stress and flower production doesn’t make sense, it will in a moment.
Broadly, there are two types of stress that a plant can experience – biotic and abiotic. Biotic stress is the result of an organism or pest. This type of stress is never positive, and plant diseases and insect infestations can be difficult to cure.
Abiotic stress is environmental, such as stress resulting from growing conditions. While extreme stress can quickly kill a plant, small amounts of stress can trigger survival responses as the plant adapts to its environment. For example, outdoor plants that are exposed to lower water conditions can become hardier in the long run. In other words, the stress triggers the plant’s survival instinct.
For a rootbound plant, the response is a little different, though the motivation is the same. As the roots become more tightly contained within the planter, the Bird of Paradise will believe that it has reached the end of its growth potential and will respond accordingly.
Why does that lead to flowering? Because, while we enjoy flowers for their beauty, blooms are actually how a plant propagates its species.
Plants don’t produce flowers under every kind of stress, in part because some forms of stress would make it difficult to produce blooms – such as dehydration or lack of light. But since an otherwise healthy Bird of Paradise doesn’t know if it will survive the threat of crowding its roots, it rushes to bloom before it dies.
That said, being rootbound won’t necessarily kill a plant – at least, not right away – so the immediate threat to the plant may be minor. But these are not the best circumstances for its growth and nutrition, and your Bird of Paradise’s health and appearance will ultimately suffer.
Pros of a Rootbound Bird of Paradise
Forced Blooming: As we already mentioned, the primary advantage of a rootbound Bird of Paradise is that it can encourage blooms. However, while some plant owners may suggest that this means the plant “likes” to be rootbound, this is probably not the case as we no evidence of that in nature. While we may like the flowers that result from being rootbound, the Bird of Paradise is experiencing stress.
Cons of Rootbound Bird of Paradise
While the stress that results from being rootbound is a clear disadvantage to growing a plant in this condition, there are secondary concerns as well.
Lack of Nutrients: Initially, potted plants absorb what they need from potting soil that has been fortified with nutrients. But after about six months, the soil becomes depleted. A plant that has become rootbound has likely not been repotted in a couple of years and therefore is probably lacking in nutrients (this is why it is important to repot or supplement with fertilizer.)
Access to proper nutrients is especially important for flowering plants that require significant energy to bloom and thrive. As a result, your rootbound Bird of Paradise will likely not bloom successfully in this state for multiple years, and its overall appearance will start to suffer.
Inability to Retain Water: As the ratio of soil to roots begins to change due to overcrowding in the pot, there will not be enough soil to help the roots stay adequately hydrated. As a result, your plant will begin to dry out more often, and leaves will show signs of dehydration and stress. A tell-tale sign your root situation is causing water retention issues is that the water you put in runs immediately out through the drainage hole when watering.
No Sturdy Foundation: Since Bird of Paradise is a plant that can grow very tall and wide, its container must support its size. If not, your Bird of Paradise may begin to lean or, even worse, tip over. Since Bird of Paradise has long, delicate stalks and does not produce new leaves quickly, the damage from a fallen plant can harm its health and appearance for a long time.
Dense Rootball: Lastly, the longer you wait to repot your plant, the more tangled its roots can become. This can make it challenging to repot the plant without damaging the root ball. Furthermore, if not carefully separated, the roots may continue to grow in a tangled mass, limiting the nutrition the plant can absorb in the future.
How to Tell if Your Bird of Paradise is Rootbound
Ideally, you should repot your Bird of Paradise into a new container at least every 18 to 24 months, using a planter that is 2-4″ larger in diameter than your plant’s previous home. This strategy will help prevent your plant from ever becoming dangerously rootbound.
However, once it is too late for preventative measures, there will be some clear indicators that your plant needs urgent repotting.
One of the most apparent indicators of a rootbound plant is that roots will begin to appear above the soil’s surface or even come through the bottom drainage holes. If you can lift the plant out of its pot, you may also notice that the roots are densely packed into a tight cluster within the container. That said, if you do not see visible roots above the soil or beneath the pot, the plant may still be rootbound.
Another indication that the plant needs a new home is ongoing dehydration, even when the plant is adequately watered. As previously mentioned, when the plant is rootbound, there will not be enough soil to sustain the required moisture, and your plant will struggle for hydration until this is addressed. Nutrients in the container will also be depleted, causing your plant to suffer until the mineral balance can be restored.
Final Thoughts
Every plant owner wants to have a stunning indoor garden, and for those who cultivate flowering plants, that often means a desire for a home filled with beautiful blooms. But it’s important to remember that pressuring a plant to bloom, either through root binding or excessive fertilizer, can do more harm than good.
Ultimately, the best advice for any plant owner is to let nature take its course. While providing the ideal conditions may not always result in rapid growth or overnight blooms, it will result in a Bird of Paradise that is healthy in the long-term – providing you with a thriving collection, filled with happy plants and lasting joy. For more information on Bird of Paradise blooms, read this article.