Yep, no more sharing, I learned my lesson. Just feel really bad I dug it up in the first place...but she was doing so much work/planting in her yard already...and we set up an evening to dig up/pick up...I surely didn't expect this! I do believe, like Ken said, it was not properly planted in the pot (because the intention was that it was going to be planted right away!) and it was not watered (her comment, "I watered when I remembered." It was extremely wet when I came and got it, although she knew I was coming to get it late the evening before. Partially my fault, had I known it was going to sit ANY length of time, I would have properly planted it in the pot, but the timing was arranged between us both, for what suited us both, and I was under the impression the tree was going to be planted right away. And...what I can learn from this is...just not to do it again! I had one of these shrubs, in a different location, suffer greatly from salt runoff (I believe). I was sure it was dead. This thing was brown in spots, and BLACK in other spots...no green whatsoever. It came back, eventually. I guess I had a small hope that perhaps this one would. I learned to keep sidwalk salt away from them, keep dogs from peeing on them (learned from experience they burn from dog pee), and now neglectful friends....lol.

you can see all the trunks.. yes ... had you asked back then.. and if you could have found them at that price.. we would have suggested single leader plants ... which would not be prone to this .. but that is water under the bridge ... get some twine.. that will eventually rot.. not nylon or plastic stuff ... like at the link.. half miles worth.. lol ... spread your arm apart.. and double or triple it.. making a nice 3 foot piece .... and go tie the trunks together.. twice or so.. 2 feet apart [you didnt tell us how big, so i am guessing on how many] .... no need to do it tightly.. we are just using the whole.. to add structure ... and it should be put back near its usual shape... and then... hope for the best ... the KEY is that .. should you forget to release them from their bondage for a decade or two.. the stuff will rot away ... the only real problem.. would be another severe ice/snow or whatever storm.. as they may now have the potential to break.. instead of bending ... and then your problem will be solved.. because you will get rid of them .... this might also be another argument for planting a monoculture .... so if it ever comes to replacing some.. think about other types of plants ... good luck ken Here is a link that might be useful: you didnt say how many hundred you planted .. lol ..

all trees.. which conifers are.. will put up new leaders.. in a matter of time ... how about a pic.. i cant give you an opinion on keeping something in bounds .. when i dont know what the bounds are ... nor what the actual plant is ... there are many arbs to choose from .. at least give us some more facts ... ken

If I understand correctly , you are saying that 8 HO T5 is better for growing plants then MH ? I certainly didn't say that. 8 54W T5 tubes are very similar in total light output, total energy use, lifetime, cost, and lumen maintenance to a single 400W metal halide bulb, assuming both are new designs and driven on modern electronic gear. My guess is that 1 430 watts MH is much better at growing plants then 8 HO T5. The main reason is penetration for MH is much higher then for the T5 even is both system is using approx the same number of watts. Correct ? You've been reading too many pot grower forums :) Those guys are so stoned they don't even know what penetration is, it just sounds good and there is this theory that metal halide is king because it has better penetration. Penetration is a measure of how slowly the light decreases with distance, and this is usually best for a high power light source mounted a long way from the plants (the sun is pretty good, try it some time!) and that describes a 400W HID pretty well. But a 400W total fluorescent system is just as good, provided with proper reflectors or baffles. So no, not correct. Also, don't read too much into what the aquarium guys say about penetration, they are dealing with very different issues trying to get light through water to the bottom of a tank. Let's say the MH needs to be replace 3 times more often then the T5, A decent metal halide run on modern switchgear can be run to failure, or say 20,000 hours of you don't like the idea of an exploding metal halide bulb. A T5 should also be run to failure, so I would compare them both on the same replacement schedule. Growers with crap old equipment may still need to replace their bulbs or tubes every 6 months but they really need to move into the 21st century. the cost would be similar but you would get better results with the MH. So my little brain is telling me that the MH solution is better then the T5 in dollars and efficiency (growing plants). Sounds to me like you already made up your mind which is best and you're trying to justify it? T5 bulbs are expensive, maybe you can buy a 400W metal halide bulb for the price of 8 T5s, maybe even for about the same cost as 3 T5s (replacing 3 times as often), but probably not a very good one. If cost is your main driver then use T8 tubes, just as efficient, need a lot of tubes but they only cost $2 each :) Metal halides are convenient and efficient in high power situations but there are not huge cost benefits over fluorescents, by all means use them if you don't mind running 100' of wire betwen all your ballasts and tubes! the light was not as intense, using the two T12's Well duuuhhh!!! Always compare like with like. 2x40W fluorescents is never going to be comparable to a 400W HID. If you compare to an 80W HID you may well find the fluorescents to be better since low power HID bulbs are not very efficient. Besides, the majority of T12 setups are far from modern technology, very inefficient and so not good light output. Even trying to compare maximum light intensity close to the bulb is not very relevant, sure the metal halide has a higher intensity two inches from the bulb but you can't grow plants two inches from it so what does it matter? 4 daylight T8's and mylar I use 4x36W T8s for an eight square foot growing area in winter, in my opinion it is the best solution for moderate growing spaces. I would use HID if I needed to light a much larger area and I use compact fluorescents in my small propagator.