Spring Planting Tips
by Michael J. McGroarty -
www.freeplants.com
Spring
means that the garden centers are packed with people, and
car trunks are packed with plants. Everybody has dirt on
their knees, dirt under their nails, and are excited about
gardening. To make certain that this excitement yields
positive results, let's discuss the basics in this article
of spring planting tips.
Installing new plants and having them grow successfully is
not difficult, nor is it as complicated as some would have
you think. Is it as easy as just digging a hole and setting
the plant in? Yes, it certainly can be. I won't get into bed
preparation, as I have covered that in other articles that
are available at
http://www.freeplants.com
Let's start with B&B plants. B&B is short for balled in
burlap. Closely examine the ball on the plant that you have
purchased. Did the diggers wrap twine around the ball to
hold the plant secure? If they did, you should at least cut
the twine and lay it in the bottom of the hole, or remove it
completely. Pay close attention around the stem of the plant
where it emerges from the root ball, as diggers often wrap
the twine around the stem several times as they tie the
ball. This is extremely important because if the string is
nylon, it will not rot and will girdle and kill the plant
two or three years from now.
When
B&B plants are stored in the nursery for extended periods of
time it becomes necessary to re-burlap them if the bottom
starts to rot before the plants are sold. If the plant that
you buy has been re-burlaped it is possible that there could
be nylon stings between the two layers of burlap, check the
stem carefully. As long as the nylon string is removed from
around the stem of the plant, it is actually harmless around
the rest of the ball, and you do not have to remove it.
Is
the root ball wrapped in genuine burlap, or imitation burlap
made of a non-biodegradable plastic material?
Genuine burlap will rot quickly underground and does not
have to be disturbed before planting. If you're not sure or
suspect a poly type burlap, you don't have to remove it
completely, but should loosen it around the stem of the
plant and cut some vertical slices around the circumference
of the ball.
More spring planting tips . . .
Now
here's the critical part. What kind of soil are you planting
in?
If
your soil is heavy clay, I highly suggest that your raise
the planting bed at least 8” with good rich topsoil. If you
can't do that for some reason, install the plant so that at
least 2” or more of the root ball is above the existing
grade and mound the soil over the root ball. Keep in mind
that plants installed this way could dry out over the
summer, but planting them flush with the ground in heavy
clay can mean that the roots will be too wet at other times
of the year.
The
“experts” suggest that when planting in clay soil you dig
the hole wider and deeper than the root ball and fill around
and under the plant with loose organic material. That sounds
like a really great idea doesn't it? Some of these experts
also recommend that you dig the hole extra deep and put a
few inches of gravel in the bottom for drainage. Where do
you suppose they think this water is going to “drain” to?
Keep
in mind that most B&B plants are grown in well drained soil.
That means that the soil in the root ball is porous and
water can easily pass through. Now imagine if you will, a
root ball about 15” in diameter, setting in a hole 30”
diameter. All around and under that root ball is loose
organic matter. Inside of that root ball is porous soil. Now
along comes Mother Nature with a torrential downpour. There
is water everywhere, and it is not going to soak into that
hard packed clay soil, so it is just flowing across the top
of the ground searching for the lowest point.
When
it reaches our newly planted tree surrounded by loose
organic matter, it is going to seep in until the planting
hole is completely full of water. (Remember my article on
getting rid of standing water and the French drain system?)
By using this planting technique we have actually created a
French drain around our poor little plant that can not
tolerate it's roots being without oxygen for long periods of
time. Because the bottom of this hole is clay, even though
we've added gravel for drainage, there is nowhere for the
water to go, and this plant is going to suffer and likely
die.
If
you can not raise the planting bed with topsoil, and are
planting in clay soil, I recommend that you install the root
ball at least 2” above grade and backfill around the ball
with the soil that you removed when you dug the hole.
Backfilling with the clay soil that you removed is actually
like building a dam to keep excess water from permeating the
root ball of your newly planted tree. The plant is not going
to thrive in this poor soil, but at least it will have a
chance to survive.
More spring planting tips . . .
Once
again, raising the bed with good rich topsoil is the best
thing you can do to keep your plants healthy and happy.
No
matter what kind of soil you have, be careful not to install
your plants too deep. They should never be planted any
deeper than they were grown in the nursery. Planting too
deep is a common problem, and thousands of plants are killed
each year by gardeners who just don't understand how
critical planting depth is.
Staking newly planted trees is always a good idea. If your
new tree constantly rocks back and forth when the wind blows
it will have a very difficult time establishing new roots
into the existing soil. Stabilize the tree with a stake. You
can use a wooden stake, a fence post, or for small trees I
often use 1/2” electro magnetic tubing, (conduit), available
at any hardware store.
You
can secure the tree to the stake with a single wrap of duct
tape. In about six months or a year the sun will dry the
glue on the duct tape and it will fall off. Check the tape
to make sure that it has fallen off. You don't want to
girdle the tree with the tape.
More spring planting tips . . .
Container grown plants are much easier. Follow the rules for
depth of planting as described earlier. Before gently
removing the plant from the container check the drain holes
in the bottom of the container for roots that might be
growing out the holes. If so cut them off so they will not
make it difficult to get the plant out of the container.
The
easiest way to remove the plant from the container is to
place your hand over the top of the container and turn it
completely upside down and give it a gentle shake. The plant
should slide right into your hand.
Examine the root mass as you hold it in your hand. Sometimes
when plants have been growing in a container for a long time
the roots start to grow in a circular pattern around the
root mass. This is not good, and you should disturb these
roots before planting so you can break this circular
pattern. You can take a knife and actually make about three
vertical slices from the top of the root mass to the bottom.
This will stimulate new roots that will grow outward into
the soil of your garden. Or you can just take your fingers
and loosen the roots that are circling the root mass and
force them outward before you plant them.
What
about fertilizer, bone meal, peat moss, and all those other
additives they are going to try and sell you at the garden
center?
Raise
your planting beds with good rich topsoil and forget about
the additives. Be very careful with fertilizers, they can do
more harm than good. I landscaped my house 14 years ago and
I haven't got around to fertilizing the plants yet, and have
no intention of doing so. They look great.
As
far as bone meal and all those other soil additives are
concerned, don't get too caught up in all that stuff. The
only thing that I know for sure is that they will make your
wallet thinner, but I don't think you'll see a difference in
your plants. Over the years I've landscaped several hundred
homes with fantastic results, and I never added any of these
additives to my planting beds.
Did I
mention planting in good rich topsoil? That's the secret!
Michael J. McGroarty is the author of this article. Visit
his most
interesting website,
www.freeplants.com and sign up for his excellent
gardening newsletter, and grab a FREE copy of his
E-book, "Easy Plant Propagation" |
