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Index : Plant Care
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- 15. Care of Newly Planted Trees - Top
- It's a great time to plant a tree in your landscape. Cooler autumn temperatures make it less likely that leaves and stems of newly planted trees will shock and dry out. Another advantage is that desert soils are still warm enough in autumn to encourage young roots to grow and establish.
When purchasing a tree from your favorite local garden center or nursery, make the right choice. Selecting a tree that will eventually outgrow it's allocated space leads to inevitable problems. Look for a tree with a slight taper to the trunk; larger at the bottom and smaller at the top. This is a sign of good trunk development. Also pick one that has branches spaced all along the trunk, even down low. Low branches help increase the girth and strength of the trunk.
When planting, dig the hole just deep enough to place the top of the root ball flush with the surrounding soil surface. Dig the hole one or two feet wider than the root ball to provide space for new roots to grow. Fill around the tree roots with the soil you dug from the hole, taking care to remove any large rocks.
To help direct water down to the roots and prevent run-off, form an irrigation well around the tree. This is made by mounding up soil up a few inches high in a circle at the outside edge of the tree's root ball. The ring of raised soil will help hold irrigation water until it absorbs into the roots and surrounding soil.
After planting, make sure the tree is watered often enough to keep the soil moist. Warm weather may necessitate daily watering for the first two or three weeks. As temperatures cool, gradually lengthen the intervals between watering.
Regardless of the type of tree you have planted, native desert or non-desert tree, they all need to be watered on a regular basis until they become established. This usually takes one complete growing season. Trees planted this fall, should be fully established by next fall. When established, native desert trees such as palo verde can be taken off irrigation entirely. Introduced tree species such as live oak, however, will require continued watering throughout their life.
Young trees should be mulched after planting. Mulch is a covering placed over the soil. Mulch materials include; decomposed granite, landscape rock, bagged bark or ground wood mulch. The best mulch material is ground wood. It is sold locally as bagged cedar mulch. A three inch layer of cedar mulch placed over the roots, from the trunk to the edge of the branches will help conserve soil moisture and moderate soil temperatures. Another advantage of wood mulch is that it slowly decomposes and as it does, adds organic matter to the soil.
Whenever possible, avoid staking trees. Small trees seldom need support. The purpose of staking is to prevent the root ball from moving in the soil and tearing off emerging roots. Our heavy mineral soils are usually sufficient to anchor the root ball. Never stake the tree to prevent the trunk from bending. The natural bending motion of the trunk is beneficial in developing something called "tension strength" in the trunk.
When staking is absolutely necessary, do it right! Use two stakes only. Wood stakes should be two inches in diameter. These large poles are often referred to as lodge poles. Place them outside the root ball and irrigated area at right angles to the prevailing wind. Make sure poles penetrate undisturbed soil at least six inches.
Support ties are attached from the poles to the tree trunk. Horticultural tape can be used to tie small trees. Tie wires can be used on larger trees. When using tie wires, thread the wire through pieces of garden hose to protect the trunk. The garden hose sections should be long enough to loop around the trunk. The wire can then be twisted at the ends of the hose to keep it in place around the trunk. Don't over-tighten the wire from the trunk to the poles. Leave enough slack in the wire to allow breezes to move the trunk slightly. After one full growing season, support wires and poles should be removed.
Finally, wait until Spring to fertilize newly planted trees. In March, just prior to Spring growth apply a small amount of ammonium sulfate (21-0-0) or other fertilizer high in nitrogen. For small trees (5-15 gallon size) apply two to four heaping tablespoons per tree sprinkled over the roots and watered into the soil. For larger trees (24 to 36 inch boxed) apply one-half to one cup of fertilizer per tree sprinkled under the branches and watered in.
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Written by John Begeman, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the University of Arizona, 520-626-5161.
Material originally appeared in Arizona Daily Star gardening column, on September 26, 1999
- Updated: September 26, 1999
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