Hi
maybe the way to go for pot growers is to pot alot of plants in smaller pots (10 gal)  instead of few in big pots (25 gal)?

does this sound logical..? 

they are lighter to handle....

btw will a rectangulat pot will be easier to root prune - like:

just cut of the sides and repot into same pot with new earbuds and thats it......?

Elin
They are trees and grow fast. Going smaller means root pruning more often.

ok lets say that an output of 30 figs per tree is enough.

you think its possible?

Harvey is right I would definitely use the cheapest chainsaw you could buy dirt is a chainsaws enemy but I don't think potting soil would be quite as bad as dirt and rocks in the ground heres an old post that I found on using a chainsaw 

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post?id=4548007

I have Lowes 18inch gas that I use for taking tree stumps out. Works perfect. Just resharpen chain when needed. The ground at my place is way rougher then any fig potted plant. I use it to take out the bottom roots of the trees and it's in the dirt, mud and even small rock debris.  There is no way a potted compacted plant is harder than the ground like that. No way. I'm with Hungeryjack. If your going to have over say 60 I think ya might be at it for some time. 
I guess it's just the choice of tools you choose to use.  If I were using a reciprocating saw I could expect to be there awhile and I can see why you'd want to down size your collection.
Sorry if I sound disprespectful I dont want to be but this thread sounds discouraging to having a big collection. If the root prunings is the reason why not to have a big collection because it's too much work, there are things that you can do to minimize that work...like your choice of tools.  I don't see myself having more than 40 potted or in the ground myself because I have other fruit trees and such.
So to summarize...Chain saw.

For those of you who root prune with a chain saw, what brand do you use?

Hungryjack, I guess your difference in experience is the type of soil you're cutting through.  I don't know what perlite would do to a chainsaw but decomposed fir/peat/etc. shouldn't be a problem.  Some potting mixes have sand in them and that would be hard on a chain but sand should be avoided anyways, IMO (little nutrient or water holding capacity and can help things turn to cement).

Eithieus, no offense taken.  Tree roots are never as hard as soil particles (sand, clay, etc.).  It's the abrasiveness of soil particles that is the problem.


I thank God I don't need to do root pruning of large fig trees and can grow them easily outdoors.  I have a jackfruit tree where root pruning may be an issue some day.  I think the bushel basket that Hungryjack posted in another thread looks like a good viable option.

Besides hand pruning of roots and air-pruning, entrapment seems to work just as well from my limited experience (about 100 chestnut trees and a few other odd ball things).  The RootTrapper pots work very well but the lack of rigidity can be a problem for stability unless you get to some very large pots.  Chemical "pruning" of roots also works.  I've read some good things about one copper product whose name escapes me right now but I was unable to find a local supplier.  Doing some searching I ended up buying some MicroKote.  I haven't really checked on the effectiveness that well to give an opinion on it but some marijauna growers gave it high praises in some forum I looked at while doing the research (no, I don't hang out there and only joined to be able to view photos).  Some of those MJ growers are very creative and can be a good source for good information; they're highly motivated!

I found 2 of my trees i took pictures of in March 2009.

One shows the wedges and one of the others was not finished.

Not good quality pictures from back then.

click to enlarge

 Harvey, it is the hard particles actually embedding themselves into the edge and being driven farther in with repeated impacts that causes dings to form. The forces imparted on the edge are so large it only takes one touch to the ground or mud on the bark to foul the blade and the longer it is used afterwards the more material will need to be removed to restore the edge during sharpening. So I think potting mix with perlite would not damage the edges as much because the only resistance available to drive the particles into the metal is from the roots and light potting materials, which do not offer as much resistance as the solid wood in limbs and trunks or the solid ground. I think it is more likely the operator will be damaged than the chain ; )

I think when I root prune, I'll fire up the power washer to remove all the dirt. With using the power washer, should be completely clean of dirt in 10 minutes. When all the dirt is gone, it shouldn't affect the chainsaw one bit.


luke

Luke, I was thinking of suggesting that as that's what I did when I cut up a huge sycamore stump once (5' diameter trunk, weighed about 5 tons), but I'd be somewhat worried about going beyond the area where you plan to cut and damaging the bark/surface of the roots being retained.  It worked well in the situation I used it in but I was removing the tree.

In a month I'll try it out on say 10 trees. Have the trees all ready set up, so once the power washer is started will go from one to the next. My guess it should only take 10 minutes a tree or less. Once all the dirt is off, fire up the chain saw. My guess is 2 minutes apiece. I'm thinking the longest part will be re potting. To make things quicker, it will be set-up as a assembly line. I'll have my wife or son helping me, because surely you need help doing this.

I will stay away from the trunk of the tree, so not to damage the bark. Will also have to test which sprayer nozzle will be best for the job. I was with Jason once when he was removing soil from one tree and it does take a long time by garden hose alone. By using the garden hose, I would think you could go threw a couple hundred gallons of water per tree. So hoping to use a tenth of the water by power washing.
luke

Luke , I hope it works , but I would worry about it being too harsh for the fine feeder roots as Harvey mentioned.

Luke, I did this for some citrus trees recently.  It becomes difficult to get soil back into the center of the rootball.  If you shoot tangentially across the edge of the root ball instead of straight in toward the center it will work better.

Luke,

 Power washer, no good, too much root damage.
 Plan on using and disposing lots of water.
 Soak root balls in water, half filled trash pails work.


CUT WITH CHAIN SAW BEFORE CLEANING.

If you clean first,
chainsaw will not work,
it will tear the roots, not cut them.

Chainsaw does not do all the work,
it will save time and energy,
but there is still plenty of pruning by hand
once you cut the sides and bottom off.

Also, chainsaw works great on trees in tree form,
single trunk.
If you have them growing in bush form,
then use a hand saw, not powered,
you will cause too much damage to the tree.

I would NOT barefoot 10 trees,
then try to pot them up,
you won't finish in one day,
even with help.

Good luck

I hate power tools special chainsaws. I do it the old fashion way, good old bow saw,it work better than power tools, just as fast and clean cut.

Here is a picture of the 4 negronne's cut and put in new containers.They are the ones in the square red containers. Next years they are going in the ground.

This will do root pruning with ease.
http://www.harborfreight.com/18-machete-with-serrated-blade-69910.html