Interesting read on planting bare root trees

[Turkey Creek]

Found some new information on planting bare root trees. Need to scroll down a bit into the document to see the most relevant info.. A lot of time invested in digging a hole, but if you are looking for the highest success on a limited number of trees seems it is the way to go.

www.ext.colostate.edu/mg/Gardennotes/633.html

 

[SD51555]

Same goes for tubes. Lots of money and work, but tremendous success. It's all about matching your method, tree, and goals.

 

[SD51555]

I skimmed through most of that. What is it about that article that jumped off the page at you guys?

 

[Turkey Creek]

I skimmed through most of that. What is it about that article that jumped off the page at you guys?

Large saucer shaped hole and how the width of the hole corresponds to rapid root growth. I would venture a guess that most of us dig a hole with vertical sides and just big enough to deposit the roots into.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Good info on that link. Thanks for posting, TC.

 

[SD51555]

Got it. I wonder if it's the hole, or the absence of competition? I say that because I used a 2' earth auger to plant my first batch of bare roots back in 2008. I had good growth out of those right away. Trouble was, drilling in unturned sod made backfilling the hole a PIA. The following year, I skipped the auger and used a tile spade to dig as narrow a hole I could while still getting down as far as needed to stretch out the root. I came back over the top with 4x4' fabric right away and got the same amount of growth.

 

[Jordan Selsor]

Damn! I thought I knew how to plant a tree! Thanks for posting. I learned several things