diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index bf334c1..69e9e69 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -64,6 +64,24 @@ docker run -d \
     nginx
 ```
 
+### Volumes
+
+The `--root` flag must indicate either a directory that either a) does not
+exist (it will be created); or b) exists and is empty; or c) can be emptied by
+removing all of the contents.
+
+Why?  Git demands to clone into an empty directory.  If the directory exists
+and is not empty, git-sync will try to empty it by removing everything in it
+(we can't just `rm -rf` the dir because it might be a mounted volume).  If that
+fails, git-sync will abort.
+
+With the above example or with a Kubernetes `emptyDir`, there is usually no
+problem.  The problematic case is when the volume is the root of a filesystem,
+which sometimes contains metadata (e.g. ext{2,3,4} have a `lost+found` dir).
+Git will not clone into such a directory (`fatal: destination path
+'/tmp/git-data' already exists and is not an empty directory`).  The only real
+solution is to use a sub-directory of the volume as the `--root`.
+
 ## Manual
 
 ```
diff --git a/cmd/git-sync/main.go b/cmd/git-sync/main.go
index f70867c..0ee35bc 100644
--- a/cmd/git-sync/main.go
+++ b/cmd/git-sync/main.go
@@ -1841,7 +1841,10 @@ OPTIONS
 
     --root <string>, $GIT_SYNC_ROOT
             The root directory for git-sync operations, under which --link will
-            be created.  This flag is required.
+            be created.  This must be a path that either a) does not exist (it
+            will be created); b) is an empty directory; or c) is a directory
+            which can be emptied by removing all of the contents.  This flag is
+            required.
 
     --sparse-checkout-file, $GIT_SYNC_SPARSE_CHECKOUT_FILE
             The path to a git sparse-checkout file (see git documentation for