The particular nuttall's oak I limbed up one tier indeed had those short Pin';s on the inside of the limbs, but wasn't shaped as Pin oaks with the decsending branches. I have 2 Willow oaks but they are small, one is about 17 inches tall, the other is about 3 ft tall, so I can't speak for how they will be shaped. Well, whatever, I guess they are normally shaped then.

Hi Carol, I am in Sarasota also and have the privilege of having a very old, huge oak in my yard. When we were building this house, we called a respected arborist in to help us protect this tree from construction since it was the reason we bought this property. We also wanted to remove the 8-12 foot round of 'saplings' growing around the trunk to start planting things. He told us that these are not saplings, they are suckers which come up directly from the root system of the tree. The old tree is not as thick in foliage as it was in its youth, and this is one of the ways it tries to get more energy, by producing more foliage in the way of suckers. He strongly advised us not to dig up or spray them in any way, as it would make the tree decline, and perhaps even die. We asked him if it we could trim them (some were 2 feet or more tall). He said that would be fine as long as we kept most of the foliage. Since then, we have weed-whacked the suckers at an even level of about 8-10 inches once or twice yearly, I would estimate. We have planted ferns at the edges, which has grown into this a little, and there is also cast iron plant and firecracker plant at the edges which have grown into the suckers a little. I think the suckers look nice like a groundcover around the tree. In fact, it looks a lot like the asiatic jasmine around town. As an aside, our neighbors have many oaks and a very manicured yard. Their gardener sprays the suckers around some of their oaks a couple of times a year. These oaks that get their suckers sprayed have declined noticeably and don't look beautiful to me any more. An old, huge oak is a beautiful, beautiful thing. Nothing you plant around it will be as valuable or beautiful. My advice would be to just trim at a lower level, plant non-harmful things at the edges, or go for pots under the tree. If you'd like to see it in person, I'd be happy to show you my suckered tree. I think it looks nice. By the way, it's just my opinion, but I think part of the majesty of an old oak is seeing the gorgeous trunk base. For that reason also, consider not planting close to the trunk so that it can be visualized to its fullest! Good luck with your beautiful tree. Anna

I agree that (some) ferns are as tough as old boots. Also, they don't necessarily require damp conditions. I have planted a number of ferns - basically whatever K-Mart was selling as Baby Ferns - along the narrow passageway between fence and house. Although they are protected from our heavy frosts, they still have to contend with the winter cold of the Canberra region. Some turned up their toes in the first winter, the survivors went on to endure our drought. Over the past 3 years, the only water they have received is the odd shower of rain. The oak tree, at 100 years, should be providing high shade - that is, shade from direct sun but still allowing for a lot of light underneath. There are oodles of plants which would enjoy the environment, including shrubs. I would definitely recommend the old acanthus (oyster plant or bear's britches). After dying back after flowering in summer, it shoots up again in autumn. The large dark green leaves are quite impervious to cold and would provide a luxurious green under the bare oak. If it were my garden, I would plant lots - they grow from root cuttings. The leaves themselves look fantastic edged with a rim of frost. Lots of photos on the net of the flowers, but finally found this one of the plant. Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/gl_plants_perennials/article/0,1785,HGTV_3610_1956068,00.html

I think mailing success has more to do with how you package them rather than when you mail them. In other words, I would not send them bare-root. If you minimize root trauma, they should mail well in Fall or Spring. The heat of the summer might be bad if they sit in a package in the sun. And, I would probably not send them in late winter if they had already come out of dormancy (have tender new growth) and you are expecting them to sit on someone's doorstep during an arctic cold invasion.