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Too hot to plant shrubs?

17 years ago

Hey-

My local nursery will be having a sale this weekend. I rently did a lot of work to my backyard & added a water feature etc. Now I need to get some shrubs going along a fence that faces the street ASAP so I can have some privacy. The temps here will be in the upper 80s/loers 90s for the nect week. Is it safe to plant things under these conditions? The shrubs I am considering are hibiscis - white chiffron, burning bush & a joponica. They will be in sunny locations all day when they are planted. I will have soild mix & mulch ready to go if I plant them this weekend. Would I be better off waiting until cooler weather this fall to plant them, or should I do it now & keep a close eye on them? I think it would be OK to plant them now. They are in 3 gallon containers at the nursery now & would probably like to have a permanent home. Please feel free to suggest any tips.

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Comments (9)

Saypoint zone 6 CT
17 years ago
I think you can pretty much plant container plants anytime, just make sure to keep them watered. It's the balled and burlapped plants that seem to be difficult to keep from drying out.
yankee_in_va
17 years ago
I plant from Spring to late fall without a real problem, particularly if you can watch things closely. I would mulch the base to keep things cool. The only other advice I give when planting is something I recently learned was so important --- plant high.
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Fall-Winter are the best time to plant before spring growth in my opinion as long as the ground isn't frozen. At least that is what I have observed after several years at my house when I planted all sorts of things throughout the years. The only exception is the sudden extreme cold snap where you go from 80,90*F weather to below 20*F weather within few days causing damages to newly transplanted plants.
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In USDA 7 this should still be prime autumn planting time. (In my part of USDA 8 the curtain drops in November - the stormiest month of the year - and December is the coldest month of the year. Nevertheless landscape contractors and others who work in the rain may transplant etc. right through the winter, whenever the ground is not frozen). The only thing is you will have missed the chance to have new plantings root well out into the new site right after planting in any cases where particular kinds have already extended their roots (60% of root elongation for the whole year occurs in fall, after the overwintering stem (or crown, in the case of perennials that do this, such as peonies) buds have been set. But any hardy plants you already have on hand should still go into the ground now instead of being kept trapped in pots until next year. Also any root-bound woody plants - these are very frequent on the market, unfortunately - should have their roots cut and/or pulled open at planting time anyway; any circling roots that have been cut will not elongate to the same extent again until the following autumn. Spring: Winter buds open, causing new roots to form - but emphasis is on new shoot growth, flowering Summer: Top still gets most of the energy Autumn: Winter buds mature, causing existing roots to elongate - the only time of the year when plant's energy is concentrated on root growth Winter: Plant effectively hibernates, except for minimal root growth which may happen when soil temp. in 40s F. or above
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Timing of root growth of cold climate adapted woody plants is regulated by hormones produced by overwintering stem buds. Once setting of these buds has finished prompting a significant elongation of existing, intact roots in fall the winter mode is basically one of hibernation. This late in the year some kinds may have set bud two months ago. Production of new roots from cut root ends occurs when winter stem buds open in spring. The traditional commercial cycle for finished stock that is to be sold bare rooted aligns with this biological schedule. With plants ready to be dispersed dug in November, placed in cold storage for the winter and then sent out the following year, for late winter planting. Such material has no feeder roots at time of planting, with new roots bursting out of the old, often cut back main roots as soon as spring bud break has occurred.
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jclyle
Original Author
17 years ago
yankee_in_va-
when you say plant high, do you mean have the root ball a little higher than the surface?
Saypoint zone 6 CT
17 years ago
Unless you have heavy clay soil and horrible drainage, I don't know of any reason to plant high. As long as you don't dig the hole any deeper than the rootball, or be sure to compact the disturbed soil in the bottom to avoid settling later, planting at the depth it was growing before is fine.

Be careful of balled and burlapped shrubs or trees. The digging and burlapping process often piles soil around the stems/trunk at a level that is higher than when the plant was grown. You should always check, and adjust the planting depth accordingly.
yankee_in_va
17 years ago
Yes, I mean to have the top of the root ball a little higher than the surface. And yes, most everyone in this neck of the woods has infamously heavy clay.
eldo1960
17 years ago
Container grown shrubs can be planted anytime. From late spring to early fall, however, you are committing to watering anytime the root ball becomes dry, which could be quite often. Autumn is recommended as the ideal planting time, but many nurseries are low on stock after the spring and early summer rush.
chescobob
17 years ago
I have planted about 200 or more conatiner shrubs over the past 3 years. Most were planted in the Summer. Of these, I lost only 2 Blue Barron hollies which I believe were poor plants.
jasper_60103
17 years ago
jclyle,
I know what you mean. Nurseries are trying to reduce stock now and offering tempting prices. I would go for it. I just planted 4 Nannyberries last Sunday. So far, so good. I put down 3" of hardwood mulch and been watering daily. The weatherman predicts temps in 100's by this weekend, but I'm not too concerned.
eldo1960
17 years ago
Plant them as soon as possible, and water them when the soil begins to dry out.

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