Picking a site:
The first thing to do before ever purchasing
a tree is to choose a site that is suitable to the tree and its growth
habits. Different trees grow faster and slower than others.
Some can tolerate partially shaded sites while other require full sun.
One of the biggest problems usually encountered is not planning for the
trees size. Many varieties such as the Canadian Hemlock can be
trimmed and maintain a small size for a relatively long period of time.
If you want a natural look in your landscape you should determine how
wide the tree will eventually grow before planting. Another thing
to consider is whether the little tree that looked great directly in
front of your house, will still look good blocking the view of your
house in 10-20 years.
Site preparation:
University guidelines suggest digging a hole
that is twice as wide as the root ball and the about the same depth as
the root ball. They would argue that this loosens the soil and
permits the new roots to spread outward without being prohibited.
Unless your site is extremely compacted, I am going to argue that it is
not necessary to dig such a wide hole. First of all by digging the
hole that much bigger, it not only makes it harder to get the soil back
in place, i.e. settling will cause a sink hole if you don't put enough
soil back in, and second it will cause the tree to be more unstable in
the event of strong winds. We have had great success by digging
the hole just 3-4 inches larger around than the tree ball and just as
deep as the ball.
Planting your tree:
First, make sure your hole is large enough,
but not too deep! Unless you have some mechanized way of the
lifting the tree out of the hole, it will be very difficult to lift your
tree out of the hole to either put more dirt in or dig some out.
We recommend planting your tree at the same depth it was growing in the
field. Once the tree is in the hole and some dirt has been thrown
around the root ball to stabilize it you can now cut the twine of the
tree and cut off any excess burlap. You may also want to cut slits
in the burlap as deep as you can reach to allow the roots to branch out
as quickly as possible. You are now ready to fill in your hole.
Two different methods may be used: you can either fill dirt and tamp it
in around the tree as you fill or fill dirt and water it in and let it
settle as you go. Watering the dirt around the ball will help
carry loose soil down to the bottom of the hole to fill in any air
pockets which is absolutely critical for the survival of the tree.
Tree Care:
Now that you have your tree planted and
looking good what's next? Well, the whole first year is critical
in the life of your tree and perhaps even the second year as well.
Let's give your tree a running start by giving it a good amount of mulch
under branches and outward by several inches at least 1-2" deep.
Not only will this help keep moisture in, but it will help keep the
roots cool and prevent weeds from competing for water. You may
also want to stake your tree by placing three stakes surrounding your
tree and tying rope to the tree and stake to support the tree in case of
strong winds. Remember, the tree used to have a very large root
system and now it's roots are directly beneath it. When watering
be very careful to only water as needed. I can't
stress this enough, if you over water your tree it is just as harmful as
not watering your tree enough.
Now that you have done all of the above sit
back, relax and enjoy your tree!
