Austrian Pine Question

10 years ago

I just bought a 4' Austrian Pine and planted it. I removed the burlap and twine and was surprised to see that the ball was a wet mass of clay. I tried to gently break off some of it to see if there were roots throughout, and the whole tree became detached from the ball. There were a few thick roots that had been cut off when it was dug up, and a number of very small and short others -- diameter about like twine, and 3-4 inches long. The tree itself looks great, but I'm worried the very sparse, and short roots might not allow it to get established. I dug a big hole, and worked composted manure in with the soil, and watered it well with a root stimulator solution. What do you think? Should I be concerned?

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Comments (8)

nurseryman33
10 years ago
I would be concerned. I would have put it in the hole with the burlap on it, backfilled most of the way,and then just cut off the twine and burlap that was above grade. Austrian pine are coarse rooted and can be difficult to transplant. Planting a bare rooted 4' pine in July has a poor chance of surviving IMO.
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lkz5ia
10 years ago
True, July is about the worst month to plant a tree, but if its any consolation, Austrian Pines end up dying when they are relatively young anyways.
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I hate to say it, but I think your tree is definitely a goner. While I am no tree expert, I am a passionate amateur, so I have learned a few things. I am 100% certain that your tree is suffering from Dothistroma pini, otherwise known as Red Band Tip Blight. It is a fungal disease that can attack any tree, especially from age 30 on, but it especially attacks vulnerable trees. I think I read somewhere that Austrian Pines should be spaced 15 feet apart, but I can't find where I read that. At any rate, the middle tree looks extremely crowded from both sides, which is going to make it extremely vulnerable to disease. This probably explains why the other two appear to be doing alright. The reason I am so certain your tree has dothistroma is because of your extremely valuable and informative closeup of the needles. If you'll notice, the outer halves of the needles (the tips) are brown, but the inner halves (the bases) are still green. This is the unique hallmark of dothistroma. In addition, it typically starts from the bottom of the tree and works it way up. Considering how few green needles are left on your tree, it is probably more dead than alive at this point. Since it is so crowded out by the other two, I would just remove it. Otherwise the other two might become vulnerable as well from competition, not to mention the high possibility of infection from this extremely contagious disease. Also for this reason, you should educate yourself on the early symptoms of this disease and for diplodia so that you can hopefully nip disease in the bud before it takes over your other two trees, especially since they have been so close to the infected tree. It is possible to stop the disease if treated in time, but infection can be hard to detect until it is too late if you aren't vigilant. Also, try to remove the dead tree in dry, non-windy weather if at all possible because heat, rain, and wind are how the spores are spread. I have included some links to government and university sources about dothistroma so that you can learn about early symptoms, treatments, etc. There are plenty more such sites if you google "dothistroma." Good luck, and sorry about your middle tree. Laurel http://lancaster.unl.edu/factsheets/087.htm http://extension.missouri.edu/extensioninfonet/article.asp?id=1709 http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/hortnews/node/81 http://urbanext.illinois.edu/ShrubSelector/detail_problem.cfm?PathogenID=58 http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/fidls/dothistroma/doth.htm http://www.forestryimages.org/browse/subimages.cfm?sub=688
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The fact that pine seedlings CAN naturally grow on disturbed sites doesnt mean that these non native seedlings wouldn't grow better in the comfort of cultivation. Mulch prevents soil from losing moisture, it prevents soil from eroding, it moderates soil temperatures, and it discourages competition from grasses and weeds. I doubt there is any data to suggest there is a benefit to not mulching newly planted trees. I doubt these Austrian pines are going to find his arid California landscape too wet. Worst advice ever. Contrarian gibberish.
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tsugajunkie z5 SE WI ♱
10 years ago
Mulch it, water when the soil is dry 3 inches down and pray.

Do not kill it with kindness by overwatering.

tj
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
hope you have a warranty ....

and if it does not survive.. review the link for PROPER PLANTING ... for the planting of its replacement ....

also.. study and perfect PROPER WATERING .. along with the rest.. like PROPER TIMING ...

also.. they are conifers ... and there is a great conifer forum.. should you wish to be enabled in that regard ... as they are also trees.. planting is the same ...

you NEVER break open a ball and burlap ... you ONLY break apart a potted conifer.. if you find severe root circling.. and you only do that prior to bud break in spring .... or late in fall ...which are PROPER PLANTING TIMES....

keep that recpt handy.. if you have that warranty ...

ken

ps: ball and burlap plants are field grown.. for years... and it is within the definition of such.. that a vast majority of its roots were cut off.. when they BALLED it .... and all such growers.. grow in clay ... e..g. if they grew in the sand i have.. they would have handed you a bare root plant.. because sand will not make a BB ...

Here is a link that might be useful: link
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gazania_gw
10 years ago
If your Austrian Pine survives it's transplant shock, you will want to read up on Diplodia Tip Blight.

Here is a link that might be useful: Diplodia
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calliope
10 years ago
It's hard to quantify planting B&B trees anymore because of what may be used to do the wrap. We still call them burlapped, but the wrap could be anything from degradable burlap to synthetic, and may or may not have a ground cloth cover in addition. The tree may or may not have had the majority of roots cut off when it was burlapped, as it may have been root pruned well before the procedure or not, often depending on whether it was Northern or Southern grown. There is a period after it is wrapped where it's held in nursery conditions or controlled field conditions to allow collateral root growth and how well it's rooted when it is sold to the end user depends on how long and well this stage lasted. Lots and lots of variables. Landscapers plant in all seasons, including summer as long as the ground can be turned. Unless you see roots emerging from the burlap, it won't hurt it at all to remove it, and the soil falling away, if it does not take root hairs with it, shouldn't do further damage if you get it in ground immediately and watered in so that air pockets do not prune out the root hairs. They die quite rapidly when exposed. It's a crapshot on the quality of nursery stock as to how well or how long it was held for root development at the growing site, and why it's important to buy from reputable sources who don't skimp on this step if you're buying B & B. Watch your watering and follow recommendations. Soil amendment is not recommended when planting trees, btw. Now for the major issue on Pinus Nigra in your area and that's diplodia blight. It's prevalent where I live and installing those beautiful Austrian pines make them dead men walking. I have had some strikingly beautiful old trees on site, dead now but that tells me at one time this scourge was not an issue here, but is now. You may lose your tree from it when it's not a transplant problem at all. Google it, and see if it's prevalent in your area. I think it is.
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calliope
10 years ago
Gazania was submitting when I was keying in my response. Do consider the diplodia issue. I am losing a lovely Austrian as I type in a very prominent site. It's my mate's fav conifer in the landscape so we live with it, but it's pug ugly condition tells me we should just have put it out of its misery a couple years ago and replaced it with a more tolerant choice.
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edlincoln
10 years ago
My parent's lost all the Austrian pines in there yard to disease.
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Austrian Pine Question

Comments (8)

nurseryman33

lkz5ia

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