Any suggestions for plants with shallow roots?
beth_in_bend
14 years ago
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redwing269
14 years agoRelated Discussions
Shallow Roots...Deep Roots
Comments (13)hey don.. slummin in the tree forum .... peeps .. don is a hosta freak ... and a list freak .. and i love him for both .... i will guess .. he wants to make a lists of trees ... that are favorable to garden under ... based on the aggressiveness of the root system ... and he has been to my place a few times .... go figure on that ... lol .. who knows about his choice of friends .... so what he MIGHT be looking for.. is a list of trees with tendencies toward fibrous root systems that interfere with the growth of the plants under ... but not limited to fibrous roots .... IN MY EXPERIENCE .... maple.. especially norway .. and JM [anything with acer as its first name] willow mulberry birch liquidamber [sweetgum] apple [including crab, as they sucker every time you sever a root] and now the coffee has clicked in.. and i am totally blanking.. lol ... more later.. maybe ... when i moved here and tried to get the same answers.. i was told.. by a myriad of hosta growers.. that.. IN GENERAL ... all nut trees are favorable to being deep rooted.. and allowed companion plants .. and ergo .. i went with a lot of oak ... red, scarlet,black, shingle [imbricaria??], white [bicolor?] ... and as far as my hosta peeps have said.. jugulone is not an issue under walnut ... for hosta ... absolutely no experience with live oak though ... and i had a hickory at the old house that seemed to create no problems ... all that said.. growing things under trees.. the root issue is not as important.. as watering.. as gal mentioned ... specific growing conditions ... extremely mature trees .. tend to create deserts under them ... and you need to provide the water the hosta needs ... if the plant gets the water.. then they can co-habitate in a friendly way ... but under some trees.. it is NOT going to be a plant and forget situation ... at least until the intruder achieves some level of 'establishment' ... in other words.. slap a babe in there.. and the tree might win .... as compared to inserting a mature large plant.. which can fend for itself ... or compete with the tree ... given a reasonable amount of supplemental water getting the invader ESTABLISHED ... is imperative .. for it to try to compete on a successful basis ... am i on point don???? does this help the rest of you give don extra trees for the lists ... good luck ken...See MoreAny Suggestions on Rooting Moss, Gallica, Damask?
Comments (12)Robert, The Albas are particularly difficult creatures. Some varieties I have never managed to root cuttings of, after a decade of trying. ('Konigin von Danemark' comes to mind) A friend once told me that you can root Alba cuttings more easily if you allow the plant to experience a frost before taking wood, but this implies taking hardwood (Winter) cuttings only. The Gallicas and Damasks are quite a bit easier if you time things right. I found the easiest wood to root was one of two: flowering shoots as close to pencil thickness as possible, taken from the plant no more than 2 or 3 weeks after blooms have finished. It is important to take some of the heel on that cutting. In other words, using good secateurs, cut the shoot off the parent branch as close as you possibly can, keeping every millimeter of that shoot and retaining that thicker wood at its base. Its the wood at this branching point that will form callous most easily. The second choice (and with some varieties this worked better for me) I take the mid-Summer basal shoots once they have pretty much stopped growing at the tips and have started to harden (about mid-July in my climate) and I cut these up into 6" pieces, making the cut at the base about 1/4" below a bud eye. On the side opposite the bud eye, scrape the bark lightly to expose the cambium layer, a scrape 1/2 to 3/4" long. The sections that will root most easily will be the ones in the middle of the cane, for most varieties. I had the best success with either kind of cutting wood by placing these in Ziploc bags in soil that was damp but not sopping wet and placing these in a shady location. Some dappled morning or later afternoon light is OK, but no direct light at mid-day should be permitted. Left undisturbed, these should be ready to pot up in 3 to 5 weeks. Paul...See MoreAny plants for a full shade, shallow soil site?
Comments (13)we had a concrete yard with a foot high layer of soil in a raised bed and we raised rocket lettuce basil spinach and chard in there. if you have about two or three foot you could try anything just buy some seeds and see how they fair seeds are fairly cheap and if nothing comes of it theres little lost. just top up whats already there with a good layer of compost and sprikle your seeds on top. wildflowers native to your area will grow almost anywhere they can find footing even out of walls and many are shade loving you could try collecting seeds from wildflowers along shaded woods that take your fancy or if your permitted taking the plants and a good chunk of soil with them and replanting beside your trees. beans will also grow in shade and climbers will creep up the trees and find light something like honeysuckle or jasmine so long as they have enough food to feed the roots while they are climbing up. you may get less of a crop of flowers or fruit from anything in shade like kale will grow much smaller but it will still grow....See MoreSoil needs of shallow rooted plants
Comments (10)Actually, that is a myth :-) Water or rain does not magnify sunlight and cause leaf spotting. But watering late in the day can be risky. Water on foliage, regardless of whether intentional or accidental, that remains on the foliage during the evening and nighttime hours can lead to fungal problems - high humidity (caused by the excess water) and warm evening temps are a prime breeding ground for fungal organisms. It is better to water very early in the day (less chance of wasting water to evaporation) or even during the day if using a sprinkler or watering wand. You just want enough exposure to sunlight so that the foliage dries completely before nightfall. The best plan is to avoid water on foliage anyway - very little moisture is absorbed through leaves - and concentrate on watering at the root zone....See Moredavemichigan
14 years agobeth_in_bend
14 years agonortherngirl_mi
14 years agomad_gallica (z5 Eastern NY)
14 years agoDYH
14 years agosamfawzy10
14 years ago
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