lsoh: My Carolines were planted 3/21 this year and the first fruit was harvested 8/10, production peaked about 9/10 or a little later. The plants still have many unripe berries but there won't be enough heat to get them to the picking stage. The bed was prepared by spading and tilling in about 6" of compost in the Spring of 2008 and left fallow until planting this Spring. When did you plant? Are your plants still sending out shoots? How many did you plant and did they all survive? If they were alive and growing well through the summer I'd leave them in next year. BTW, I'm in central KS, just below the NE border. Michael

You should be able to plant all winter in your location. The soil will stay a lot warmer than the air, and roots continue to develop and establish much of the winter. It's quite incorrect to think that the roots of woody trees and shrubs (or much of anything) stop growing in the fall and winter. Even deciduous trees that are fully dormant should be planted in the fall/winter in your climate. The roots will grow! You probably have several months of establishment time ahead of you, until the soil gets cold enough at root level to slow down growth. By that time, unless your trees are extremely large, they should be fully established. As a matter of fact, fall is THE ideal time for planting in warm climates. The top growth slows down so that the plant can concentrate on root development. It's a good thing. It used to be common knowledge; I wonder why it isn't anymore. Your trees should be well established by the time hot temperatures roll around in the spring of next year. The last thing you want your new trees to experience is bud break, new growth, and hot temperatures on a root system that isn't developed yet. Be sure to follow proper planting methods...dig the hole no deeper than is needed for the rootball to sit at soil grade or higher....but two to three times wider. Do NOT add soil amendments of any kind into the hole or mix with the backfill. Use the native soil. Mulch with a 2 to 3 inch layer of something organic like pine straw, bark chips, etc. but do not pile the mulch up against the trunk. Be sure to keep the root ball watered and moist. Fall is the time for planting in all warmer climates. Actually, this is true for anyplace where the soil doesn't freeze solid. Don't trust information you get from HomeDepot. Once year, I over heard a clerk telling a customer that she could plant the cut Christmas tree she had just purchased in the ground after the holidays. A CUT Fraser Fir! Lordy.

Thank you both for your replies. Yes, I do live in Brookline, MA and just received shipping confirmation from Bluestone Perennials that my plants shipped today and according to UPS, should be here Wednesday. I'll plant them then. In the meantime, I went to Mahoney's in Winchester Saturday where they have a special on most (but not all) perennials for 1/3rd off. However, in the back they had a section with perennials for 50% off. I bought two big pots of different types of Solomon's Seal for $5.50 each and some other types of perennials for mostly shade. I wanted the Solomon's Seal since I think they take a couple of years to grow from seed. I also bought 3 raspberry bushes at Lowes and even though they specify sun, I'm going to try them in a pretty sunny spot (they were only $1.00 so I made the "investment"). A friend (ohsillyme is her Gardenweb name)went with me to Mahoney's and convinced me to spend $20.00 on a Lenten Rose (Black)- yipes that's the most I've ever spent on a single plant. I've been wanting one for over a year. I really tried not to buy it but succumbed in the end. So that is now the one I'm really nervous about planting now but I kept the receipt just in case. Thank you again. Please keep your fingers crossed (I'll be saying a prayer) that the perennials I'm planting now will survive and pay off next year!

If you have any deciduous trees around your house I think you can let them be your guide, when most of them have started leafing out from their leaf buds its probably OK to plant. Most years I don't think you have to worry about frost after March first, but I do remember one year when it was bitterly cold in March. For myself my clay soil is the determining factor. I always want to do a final rototilling to try to kill any weeds or bermuda grass that is growing where I plan to plant, and with clay the amount of moisture in the soil is very important, too wet and you have a sticky mess that clumps right back down, too dry and the rototiller blades just bounce off it and I have to get my 66 pound electric jackhammer and 14 pound clay spade for a total of 80 pounds to lug around to dig my planting holes. I also live near the bottom of the north west side of a hill so my yard is usually three degrees colder than the official weather report as the cold air pools in my yard, plus sunrise comes later because of trees above blocking the light from the east.