I got two ferns from HD. I went to stick my finger in the dirt to see how dry it was. Couldn't get my finger in at all. Is this something that I can separate? I've never done anything with ferns before. I had some last year and I never repotted those. They did okay but then eventually died from the cold air because I forgot to bring them in. I know, I'm a bad mom! (I'm on phone so I hope the pic isn't too blurry.) ( photo / image / picture from poodledoodlemom's Garden )
Put the plant in a larger pot of water and let it sit for a while, amount of time depends on how long it takes the water to saturate soil. You can separate that, but after the soil is good and wet. If I am looking at the correct plant it might be Commelina communis (Asiatic Dayflower) a very common 'weed' type plant that frequently shows up in store bought plants. I pull them up and plant them over in a part of the front garden that gets mostly shade, little attention and I consider a waste land because nothing else will grow there, they grow like a ground cover, bloom, die off in the late summer or early fall, then come back the next spring.
I misunderstood what you were asking then, it looked like there are some tiny leaves of an intruder in that pot...that's what I thought you were referring to.
Ohh! Lol! No, I'm sorry. I meant that maybe it's root bound (is that correct?) because I can't get my finger into the dirt.
Okay, I gotcha now. A good soak will help you get it a good look at the roots but yes it is probably root bound. Plants from the big box stores are not youngest around so there is always a good chance of having that problem. When you transplant just go one size larger and they should be fine.
