What you suggest could cause a problem. But planting any potted tree can lead to problems getting them started.

My suggestion would be to wait to plant until the tree has dropped it's leaves this fall, winter, or early next spring. Fall being better. Then wash out all the potting soil. This will give you a good look at the roots. Try to save as many as you can by spreading them out fan shaped. Cut out any that are in a circle that can't be spread. Then plant the tree in native soil just as you would any bare root tree.

Staticx:

If you are going to set a container tree in the ground, and the potting soil is high in peat, the answer is simple: Plant with the graft a little higher so it will still end up above grade when the root ball settles. If the trees have been in containers for a while, you might want to look for dense, ingrown roots and straighten them out and/or root prune when planting, but that does not necessarily mean you need to shake off all the dirt from the containers. You should, BTW, tell us how long these trees have been in containers.

But you certainly wouldn't be trying to do this in mid-June, would you? The times to transplant fruit trees successfully are in very late fall or early spring, when the trees are in full dormancy. Transplanting in summer, even early summer when the trees are in leaf, is a recipe for tree death.

When you post a question like this, you should be specific about the type of fruit tree you are dealing with, and also your actual location. Information like this, which may not seem important to you, may be helpful to people trying to answer your questions.

Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

The whole reason the nursery trade sells trees in pots is so they can be planted in the ground any time of the year. I agree with Don that dormant planting is always superior, if only because plants with their entire root system in potting medium are difficult to keep adequately moist when in growth.

However there's a lot of growing season left and if the tree is healthy and you keep your eyes on it and water it before the mix dries out for the next couple of months you'll get a jump start over waiting until the end of the season in getting these trees established.

This is especially true of indeterminate growers like peaches and Japanese plums that continue to grow vigorously throughout the season.

I also agree with Don's advice about planting trees a bit high, but mulch the trees above the potting soil level leaving the potting soil bare so you can easily monitor and water it.

If the trees are badly root bound with large circling roots, than you might be best off following Don's advice, although in my experience fruit trees never seem to suffer from girdling roots- but that's just my anecdotal observation. If you need to do any manipulation of the roots wait for dormancy.