Melaleuca clump

[Terry]

DangerousDave, I cut away the matted roots with root shears. I find if I root prune on a regular basis, the matted roots are only on the outer margins of the pot, and the edges of the matt is easily identified and removed without disturbing the main rootball.

I have recently purchased a few eucalyptus varieties that were hugely root bound. I removed them from the pot, trimmed 25% of the root ball away, combed/teased out a the edges and repotted. Lots of water, shelter from the sun and harsh winds for a few weeks. Once you see new shoots appear, fertilise. Leave it grow for 12mths, then repeat. I use this method on all my natives.