No staking is not necessary. When I moved in to this house I put in a LOT of trees. I lost count but think there's about 30. I didn't stake any of them due to all the studys saying it's not necessary. And I regret not doing so for some trees as they are now leaning as a result of some windy days. The lean might correct itself after time but if I could do it over I would use stakes. One tree, a serviceberry was leaning over in an ice storm we had last december which was a couple months after planting and I had to stake it because it was a container tree in potting soil and way too mushy.

On the contrary another tree I had that was a container size was a Ginkgo with a seemingly pliable trunk. It was staked in the container and let that go on for too long and the tree now has a bent shape. So if you use stakes you have to stay on top of them.

I would stake them unless: Your site is protected from strong winds AND the trees are very, very firm in their root balls.

You spent $3,000 on these trees--is this guy who is planting them guaranteeing that the wind will not cause them to lean or blow them over entirely?? Will he replace the trees for you? These trees will hold their leaves through the winter and they catch a lot of wind.

Yes, trees should be free to move in the wind to develop healthy trunks and root systems--AFTER they are firmly rooted in their new site. I would stake these trees, leaving a little room for movement (just a little loosely) until late summer next year, and then remove the stakes promptly.

I would go to a farm center and get three heavy metal fence posts for each tree. Then I would go to a garden center and get some special three way straps that you can tie to these posts. Of course you can save a little money by using some strong twine and some kind of cloth to protect the trunk so the twine won't bite into it. You can also use short stakes, but I think these cause too much off-line pressure/movement of the ties and can cause unnecessary rubbing of the trunk.

If one of these wonderful Satyr Hill hollies of yours blows over in the middle of the winter it will probably die even if you replant it immediately.

Oh, some additional hints--these hollies will need a little more watering than some trees to get established and for a little longer, maybe for three years during dry spells. Also, it is best to keep the grass away from these trees. I would mulch regularly and pull any grass and weeds from around them. McLean Nursuries recommends wood chips, but I have not been able to find any. I think any good mulch will do.

--Spruce

I stopped staking trees years ago, unless the conditions on a specific site made it necessary. I also insisted that any contractor who worked for me stop staking trees on my jobs. Heck! I even made the landscape architects take staking out of their antiquated specifications!

But, you can decide for yourself....lots of information on the subject to be found on the Internet. Pro and con....though the pro aspect of staking is pretty thin.

Here is a link that might be useful: Tree staking information!

Well, not to argue too much, but here is my annecdotal evidence.

1. Several years ago my father-in-law planted a nice Douglas fir in his front yard. Two months later a strong wind tore it almost completely out of the ground. He re-planted it but it died.

2. I planted a tuliptree in my back yard and the wind got it and broke off two roots on the windward side and the tree leaned over about 35 degrees. It never got its strength back and I removed it.

3. About a mile down the road a nice fir tree of some kind was planted--I only saw it from the road so I do not know exactly what it was. One day I saw it lying on its side. It was replanted and then finally staked, but it died.

4. About a quarter mile away another person planted a row of Douglas firs. This winter one was pushed over to about a 45 degree angle. Then the owner staked it, but it also died.

Now this is just along short stretch of my one little road just outside of Winchester, VA.

Well, any of you who wants to take the risk, that's your business, but I have eyes to see with. I wonder who wrote the article about staking not being necessary. Just because someone writes a stupid little article doesn't mean its "necessarily so." I am sick of tree experts who can't see, like those people at nuresries who tell me you can't grow any fir trees around here and won't go the VA Arboretum and open their eyes. Where do these people come from? I'm flabbergasted by it all!

Sorry for the rant, but sometimes the "experts" just do me in!

--Spruce

I wish Rhizo would offer some more insight on why she is so strongly opposed to staking. What are "neccesary conditions". My brain is waiting for you to feed it data.

It's simple: if the tree will blow over otherwise, it must be staked. If it looks like it can hold itself up without staking, then it does not need to be staked.

After it roots out enough to hold itself up, then the stakes can be taken away and the root tips being pulled back and forth by winds rocking the top can commence.

In my measly opinion (lol), a properly grown tree with the appropriate root ball to canopy ratio will rarely need to be staked. I have been responsible for the planting of literally hundreds of trees, and have found it necessary to stake about 5%. Even Live Oaks planted on a waterfront bluff were not staked, for example. And that's what I would call a hostile environment.

I happen to be a person who considers a job successful after 3, 5, 10 years down the road, by the way. Witnessed with 'my own eyes'. Also witnessed is the hundreds of trees that I have seen ruined or even killed because of improper staking!

I have planted several trees right here in my own back yard within the last 2.5 years, in a location known as 'Windy Knoll' with darned good reason. We have not staked a single tree that WE planted into our clay soil and have had no shifting, breakage, or other problems, whatsoever. The one tree that we have had to stake since moving here is a lolly pop of a red bud that was here when we bought the place. It was, obviously, a very poor specimen and probably improperly planted. Our trees are a combination of containerized plants (large and small), and B&B. I've witnessed (with my own eyes, lol) our Halesia (one year in the ground) bent over nearly double in the winds that whip though this neighborhood, without budging in the hole. In full leaf!

In general, a well grown B&B tree is less likely to need staking than the containerized counterpart, unless the container is very large in proportion to the canopy or large, period. Yes, even though most of the roots are left behind at the nursery, a B&B plant begins to develop new roots rapidly. It's actually more difficult for a containerized tree to get those roots out into the surrounding soil system. The very act of root cutting creates an enormous root GROWTH response.

If your trees are top heavy and container grown then staking is very advisable. If the tree has been planted in a big hole of amended soil, then staking is a good idea. If the soil is sandy or shifting, staking is a good idea. If the trees are so poorly grown that they won't stay straight against a bit of wind, then staking is necessary. If a B&B tree has been pulled out of it's basket and burlap prior to planting, it is more likely to benefit from staking. If the planting site has a high water table, or sits at a low grade (collecting water), the tree is likely to require staking.

Fortunately for us, as technology advances we are able to know a little bit more about how trees really function. It's important to read those articles....not just one, but as many as you can lay your eyeballs on.

Here is a link that might be useful: Alternative staking systems FYI

Deciding when a tree can blow over if not staked requires some experience and judgment. My new house in Winchester is on 8 acres and I have planted about 125 trees. Not as many as it sounds like--there are lots of big open areas left. Anyway, I have staked only about 15 of these trees and have the one mistake I reported earlier. One test is to take the trunk in your hand after planting and give it a really good tug to simulate a wind stronger than you would expect. If the earth in the root ball does not bulge up and the trunk does not move so far to one side that it leaves a kind of open gap on the other side, there is no reason to stake. A very flexible trunk reduces the need to stake. I planted three 5 foot green giants last spring and the trunks were so flexible that most of the pressure was taken from the base of the trunk as it entered the root ball. When the strong winds came they bent way over, but there was no movement in the root ball or losseness at the base of the trunk. It would have been silly to waste time staking these guys. A lot of my trees have been two and three feet tall and did not need to be staked. I think I staked just about 4 of these small trees because there was no root ball to speak of and they were essentially bare root and would have worked themselves loose in the wind.

As for the topic of this post here, the holly trees--my guess is that the trunks are fairly stiff, and the tops with their evergreen leaves will provide a kind of "sail" that will catch a lot of wind. And the trees are expensive and hard to find. I wouldn't dream of not staking these trees unless the root ball is really, really firm, and they are planted so the rootball is really anchored in the soil. Of course if they are planted in a place protected from the wind the risk is much less. My place here is like a wind tunnel. From the end of October to the middle of May there is a really high probability of wind gusts in excess of 60 mph, and I want to plan for at least 75. (I may seem to be exaggerating, but in the last two years three houses within a mile of here have had their siding stripped off by these winter winds--but that's another story.) And then of course there are summer thunderstorms and straight-line microbursts filled with rain that can put a tremendous force on the top of a little newly planted tree. Yeah, maybe those storms don't hit every year, but as soon as you have $3,000 invested in some really special trees you can bet one will hit. So I make my decisions to stake with that in mind. With these hollies, I would keep them staked until about August 20 of next year after the worst of the thunderstorm/microburst season is over and the roots have had a chance to grow into the soil surrounding the original root ball.

--Spruce

If a B&B tree has been pulled out of it's basket and burlap prior to planting, it is more likely to benefit from staking.
So that would be every B&B tree I ever planted?
When the saturated clay is backfilled but not compacted and a wind storm comes along the tree is gonna shift. Staking it for as little as 6 months would have solved MY problem since this was all pretty much spring & winter wind storm stuff.

Are the hollies leafed to the ground or limbed up? Hollies limbed up might be top heavy for the trunk and need to be staked. I don't think one that is fully limbed would need staking because if there were any leaning it would correct itself and you wouldn't see it.

So...the answer is...???

There seem to be as many "correct" answers as there are people to voice opinions, each with evidence to back their argument, each assuming that all other factors are equal.

And even assuming that anyone not with them is a complete moron espousing ideas rooted in antiquarian times.

How nice to see we agree. Now, about how to plant a tree...

I was researching hollies tonight and found this discussion.

heptacodium asked: "So ... the answer is...?"

The answer is "It depends."

In any endeavor, there are very few "one size fits all" answers. We need to think about the situation and environmental factors, analyze these factors, and ask some questions. For example:

Are you planting a three foot Leyland from Lowes or a 6-8 foot slow growing expensive holly from a specialty nursery?

What are the pros and cons of taking or not taking action? (when in doubt, err on the side of caution)

Did you factor in the "what can go wrong will go wrong" rule?

If there are significant $$ at stake, I'd consult with individuals who have expertise about these issues in my area and who have no financial interest. Be wary of anyone who says you should always or you should never take a particular action when that person doesn't know anything about you, your environment, your circumstances.

Two years ago, I moved about 1,500 feet from my previous home. The conditions at the new place are very different, and I am learning that I must do many things differently.

I never staked a tree until I moved here. I didn't have to because the cottage was protected by wide band of trees so wind was rarely an issue. In the new place, we are exposed, with no protection. In this environment, I need to stake trees and many shrubs to keep the wind from pulling them out by the roots and throwing them into a salt water cove.

One serviceberry planted last spring was uprooted twice and landed in the cove. cove. That serviceberry is blooming today. She is the exception. Japanese maples and Heritage river birches did not survive, nor did a host of other trees and shrubs.

I don't think anyone can provide a "correct answer" without knowing more about the environmental issues she faces - issues like wind, hurricanes, and nor' easters, flooding, etc.

My two cents,
Pam

IF the contractor who plants the trees, be he the nurseryman or a separate contractor, will guarantee the trees for a year, and will replace the trees if anything happens to them in that year, then I think I would let him decide what is or will become a problem. That said, I would keep an eye on the hollies, and also on the root balls. After a strong wind, I think I would move aside any mulch (he is mulching I see, but how wide and deep?) and see if there were any evidence of movement at the root ball.

If he doesn't offer a guarantee, I might ask why not, and then look at how strong the winds are, and how protected the planting site is, before I made up my mind about staking or not. My inclination is to go with not, but....