exciting times...

whats your soil type ...

no amendments..

no fertilizer ...

mulch good.. water good ...

soil type then more specifics ...

ken

Timely question katskan...is that "cats can" or "CAT scan"?
Purchased a B&B Abies balsamea 'Nana' (mother's day sale) that has been in a squat 10 pot for several years.
Should I bare root it to get rid of it's 70 pounds of dirt? It's getting planted today in a nice spot that only gets early to mid morning sun.

Barbara

Thanks Ken and Barbara.

Ken: The soil type is mostly good loam, with some clay down about 2 feet. (about 50 years ago our yard was farmland). Other conifers in the same part of the garden, mostly white spruce and Norway spruce, are doing well in the soil. The proposed planting area gets morning and early afternoon full sun, but late afternoon is mostly shade. We get considerable amounts of snow and rain the in the fall, winter, and early spring, but very little in the summer.

The new tree is a species Korean fir, b&b rather than container.

Barbara: I'm not sure what to recommend in your case but typically I understand it's better not to disturb roots if possible when planting, especially with larger trees.

I've looked at many websites and reference materials recently and there are a few key questions that often conflict when working with conifers at planting time, such as:

- soil amendment (yes/no)
- fertilization (yes/no/how much/how often)
- planting hole size (depth/width)
- rootball planting height (same as original or higher)
- amount/frequency of watering
- add rim of soil around tree to catch rain (yes/no)

I'm just wondering what other list members have done in the past with their b&b trees and what steps to take to ensure success, especially with summer coming up.

Thanks everyone.

Dave
Thanks!

I've only done B&B once and that was with 2 Crepe Myrtles. The holes were 1' wider than the ball on all sides. The depth was for root-ball to match surrounding ground, no deeper. No fertilizer. No soil amendments. Added mulch layer when finished after second watering to insure no soil wash-downs occured. Watered twice a week first month, then once a week there-after. Soaked the ground at watering. Did not water if we had 1/2" or more of rain that week.
If you have poor drainage or tree requires well-drained, plant 1-2" above surrounding soil to insure good drainage.
Use the same procedure as above for 5 gal. potted conifers.

good soil .... i was worried about clay ... totally different process for clay ...

specific answers ...

- soil amendment NO!!!! ...NEVER,... NADA... NIL.. NYET ...

- fertilization NO.. NEVER,... NADA... NIL.. NYET ...

- planting hole size SEE BELOW

- rootball planting height (same as original or higher)SO THAT THE ROOT FLARE IS AT GROUND LEVEL

- amount/frequency of watering INSERT FINGER ... LET NEARLY DRY IN BETWEEN WATERS

- add rim of soil around tree to catch rain (yes/no) MOAT???

DIG HOLE 1.5 TIMES WIDER THAN BALL.. SOME SAY TWICE AS BIG ... TO THE LEVEL THAT IT NEEDS TO BE.. WE DONT WANT IT TO SINK IN THE LONG RUN... oops

remove any wire cage .... insert BB into hole.. turn until it pleases you from the direction it will be viewed ...

untie burlap .... force down to the bottom of hole.. take a fresh razor and slice off all that you can .. PERSONALLY I DONT CARE ABOUT THE LITTLE LEFT WAY BELOW ... it isnt worth the ball falling apart.. to get that little left ...

backfill about half way .. firm in there ... light stepping with boot ... fill to top with water ... go take rest while it drains away ... prepare adult beverage ...

when you come back.. insure it is vertical in all directions.. i like the corner of the house.. or a fence post.. something 'true' ... to get real close to vertical ...

refill to about 3/4 ... pack it in there.. but dont make cement ... a little more water... fill to soil level.. soak again ... perhaps leaving the hose on a trickle for an hour or so ....

IN MY SAND... i actually make a moat of sorts.. so i can lay down few gals of water at a time ... and give it time to soak in before running off ... the moat has nothing to do with collecting rain ...

mulch at least a foot outside the perimeter of the branches ... and fill in the moat with mulch if you made one

go put tools away .... start enjoying adult beverage.. and enjoy your new conifer ....

DO NOT WATER AGAIN ... until your index finger.. inserted to the second knuckle indicates it is dry or hot .... as much as they need water.. they are NOT swamp plants ... how that all works out in your soil is discoverable only by your index finger ....

good luck

ken

PS: if there is any indication.. that your hole does not drain.. we would have to defer to the clay method.. again.. something only you can define in your soil ...

Dave...here is some informative information you can look at.

I personally don't add amendments/fertilizers for new plantings. I used to but over time I found not one shred of evidence that it was beneficial. My thoughts are well known on this subject as discussed in another thread in this forum.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Good planting practices

Thanks to everyone who responded, much appreciated. I'm sure many of you have planted b&b conifers before with good results so I'm glad I asked.

Thanks Ken for the great step by step directions (including the adult beverage tip!) and thanks Dave for the good advice and providing the link.

I'll share the results with the group when we get the tree planted.

Dave