To stake or not to stake, that is the question....?
ostrich
2 years ago
Hi everyone,
I am wondering if you can advise me as to whether I should get these two young trees staked or not please. They were planted in my new yard (Zone 4b in Canada) last summer:
This Royal Beauty Crabapple was quite small when it was planted last year, and it has survived the winter well. However, now it is apparent that the trunk is not straight and it is leaning towards the west, along with the direction of the winds. Should this be staked at all?
Then the next one is a Royal Red Maple that was potted before it was planted in the ground last summer. It is about 12 feet tall now, and as you see, from a distance, it looks very even with the silhouette, though when you look closely, you will see that the main lead leans to one side, and then together with another branch, forms a "Y" at the top. Someone said that I should have this staked to get it to grow up straight. Since it is already 12 feet tall, how on earth would I stake it? And should I even stake it at all?
I know that I am supposed to let these trees have their own movements in the trunk so that it will grow stronger, so I don't want to restrict too much movements there.... so what should I do with these two trees please? To stake or not to stake..... that is the question!
Thanks in advance for your help!
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cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky)
2 years agoostrich thanked cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky)Related Discussions
To stake or not to stake American Hollies
Comments (13)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...See MoreTo stake or not to stake?
Comments (2)Take the stake off and discard it unless it is a plant that needs to be staked for height. If that is the case a permanent stake is required or it will lay down. What is the cultivar name??? Dave...See MoreStake or not to stake (Naga)
Comments (4)I would also Stake or cage it. It's going to get taller and wider and when it begins to branch out, it will really test the strength of the branches. I usually cage them and supplement with stakes/dead tree branches, etc, to help keep the branches from breaking due to the weight....See MoreYoung tree. To stake or not to stake?
Comments (2)If it stays in the container, I see no reason to stake. Even if planted in the ground, I see no reason to stake unless you plant it where it is subject to strong winds. And there is no need to think about pruning any time in the near future. Come back in 3-4 years if you still think any pruning may be necessary :-))...See More
ostrich
2 years agoseagreen_turtle Z5b/6a SE Michigan
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoostrich
2 years ago
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Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A