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how long before a bare root in water develops root rot

Bushwhacker Blood

9 years ago

I received a couple hundred bare root paw paw, arborvitae and dogwood tuesday (two days ago. I let them sit in a bucket of water overnight thinking I could plant them all the following day. I still have about a hundred and fifty. Theyve been in water about 36 hours.

Will another night hurt them ?

Featured Answer

dbarron

9 years ago

last modified: 9 years ago

Well, it won't do them any good. Change the water at LEAST! If keeping them cold and in cold water, the damage will be lessened (metabolism slowed).

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Comments (15)

Bushwhacker Blood
Original Author
9 years ago
I hadnt considered the cold hurting them. I will bring them in tonight too
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dbarron
9 years ago
Yeah, don't freeze their tender parts...but do keep them cool (40ish)
Bushwhacker Blood
Original Author
9 years ago
I was going to wrap them with a towel and put them in a feed bag for the night. do you think all the water, then going back to just damp again would hurt them.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
9 years ago
i would HEEL THEM IN .. and if need be .. put a cardboard box over them.. let ma nature take care of them ...

what you didnt tell us is where you are.. if they are fully dormant or leafed out.. and where they came from ....or really;... anything else.. upon which to give you pertinent info ...

in the alternative.. wrap the whole bunch in newsprint ... and put them in a pail. with a half inch of water.. jsut enough to dampen the paper.. and put them in the garage.. it would be akin to HARDENING THEM OFF to your local temps ...

not in the house.. not in water .. roots need air ... and to stay damp ... and dont read that as WET ...

roll the dice in Vegas ... as far as one more night or so ... who knows...

ken
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
9 years ago
i should have mention.. changing out the water.. should prolong how long it takes for them to go bad ...

ken
Bushwhacker Blood
Original Author
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
zone 7 got them from state dept of conservation, the arborvitae are leafed but I think bare root conifers usually are. the rest are not leafed out. I'm going back out now guess I will be wearing a headlamp putting them in all night. I just leafed 25 paw paws
Dingo2001 - Z5 Chicagoland
9 years ago
I'm a big baby about being cold - maybe dump dirt in your wheelbarrow, heel them in for now, then you can truck them around to your planting sites in the daytime? If it's cold out you can put them in the garage or shed or something.
Bushwhacker Blood thanked Dingo2001 - Z5 Chicagoland
Embothrium
9 years ago
Putting bare-root stock in water serves primarily to leach beneficial nutrients out of the plants and into the water.
Bushwhacker Blood thanked Embothrium
Bushwhacker Blood
Original Author
9 years ago
thanks Dingo. its not cold out tonight the low is 52. Today the high was 68. Good idea about trucking around the trees but I already heeled 25 paw paws in the ground, rinsed off 25 dogwoods and paper bagged them with 50 paw paw and 50 arborvitae. I put 25 arobrvitae 25 dogwood and 25 paw paw in a bucket of fresh water. I will plant the ones in water first thing in the morning. Hopefully I can get them all in the ground. I have a couple injuries from the military that have been getting worse the last couple years, or I would've been able to get all these trees in the first day.
Bushwhacker Blood
Original Author
9 years ago
embothrium, the directions with them said to overnight them in water if possible the day before planting. Does the benefit of water outweigh the leeching aspect for the first day?
Dingo2001 - Z5 Chicagoland
9 years ago
That's a lot of trees! I am very sure it would take me waaay more than 1 day to get them all done:) Sounds like you have a plan! Enjoy your warm weather!
Bushwhacker Blood thanked Dingo2001 - Z5 Chicagoland
Bushwhacker Blood
Original Author
9 years ago
It is alot of trees. Glad it isnt just me. I read that with a person assisting, bare roots could be planted in 1-2 minutes. That's why I stuck all of them in water the night before. I still have several more hundred enroute, I will just take them out of the wrapping 25 at a time
dbarron
9 years ago
Bare root fruit trees are stored all winter in a very cool very humid storage area. They usually are periodically automatically misted. That's how the pros store long term from digging to spring shipping....if that idea helps you.
Embothrium
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Storage in water is one of those long and frequently recommended practices that should be skipped. Commercial literature in particular remains peppered with bad information, including planting hole directions that were starting to be seen to be a bum steer by the 1960s.

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