Best ways to plant trees
The tree above was a potted tree with a large root ball.
I will share with you the best ways to plant trees depending on the type of tree you are planting from bare-root trees, root balls, or potted trees and even transplanting a tree.
The best time of the year to plant a tree is in early Spring once the ground is not frozen allowing you to dig your hole for the tree or in the Fall so that the tree has all winter to heal in.
Before you plant your tree you should know the characteristics of the tree’s growth so that you know how large it will get both in height and width. Look up and around to see if it has room to grow to reach its full size.
You should also look to see the impact of the tree on other plants you have such as the shade from the canopy of the tree it will create as it grows.
If you are transplanting a tree to reduce stress on the tree you should remove any damaged roots and trim the tree by removing about 25% of the branches. It is best to muck in the tree when transplanting them.
For a bare-root tree, you should soak the roots in a bucket of water for 1-2 hours to make sure the roots are well hydrated. It is best to plant bare-root trees in the Spring.
When you dig the hole for the new tree you need to dig it twice as wide as the root ball and slightly deeper so that you can add additional compost to provide fertile soil for the roots to grow.
As you can see in this picture we removed the sod to give the tree plenty of room to grow.
After leveling the tree to make sure the trunk was straight we filled the hole with the soil we had removed and mixed it with some additional compost to provide the best soil for the tree to establish itself. The soil level should be brought up to the top of the rootball, you do not want to plant the tree too deep or shallow.
If the weather is going to be dry and warm you should water the tree in by mucking it to make sure the roots do not dry out and this will also help to take out all air pockets as you fill the dirt in around the roots.
Place garden fabric over the area to reduce weeds from growing, and the last step is to cover the area with bark to keep weeds from growing and allows moisture to be retained by the tree and not evaporated.
If your tree needs to be staked this is the time to pound a stake in at a 45-degree angle and attach it to the tree to secure it and keep it from being blown over by any strong winds.
Here is the Dogwood tree in full bloom the first year after planting it.
The most difficult choice will be the decision on which variety of trees to plant, there are so many beautiful trees that are available to add color, structure, and even fragrance to your yard.
Now that you know the best way to plant trees you need to get out and find the tree that meets your needs and get it planted.
