Try these tree planting tips for how to plant a potted tree. Consider light, spacing, and soil consistency to ensure long-term growth.
In general, the best time to plant a tree is in the early spring or the late fall, but research your specific plant in case of exceptions. Where to plant is the spot where the tree will have the amount of sunshine it needs — full or partial, as specified; full if not specified. And, if it isn’t hardy, plant it where it will have shelter from the wind. Plant big deciduous (shade) trees on the south side of the house where they will shade in summer and let warming light enter your windows in the winter. Conifers do well as winter windbreaks on the north or windy side of the house. (Wisely placed trees can improve your home’s heating/cooling situation a lot!) When considering how to plant a potted tree, aollow these tree planting tips for best results.
Tree Planting Tips: Start with Good Soil
Dig planting holes wide and shallow, no deeper than the rootball’s size, and make them wider than needed to accommodate the tree’s spreading roots. The larger the area that you dig up around the hole in preparation for planting the tree, the easier it will be for its roots to spread and find food and water. Remove any grass for three feet in diameter.
Testing for Clay or Compacted Soil. Dig a hole about 10 inches deep (a shovelful), and fill it with water. Check it again in 10 hours (overnight). Is it empty? If it has drained less than an inch an hour, you have a serious drainage problem.
Soil. Any kind of tree that needs “well-drained soil” is at risk to drown within two years if it’s planted in compacted and clay-type soils — those that are poorly drained. Instead, plant tree varieties that are adapted to poor drainage — hardy plants that don’t specifically need “well-drained soil.” Or else rebuild the soil in a very large rooting area for your tree by working lots of organic material into the top 12 inches of dirt; or bring in better soil from somewhere else and create a large planting mound out of it.
And dig wide: Every inch of diameter dug out to the side before planting literally increases your tree’s chances of survival in such difficult soil. It may also help to set the tree higher than usual in the planting hole. The sides of a hole in clay should be left with a rough surface rather than slick-cut by the digging tool. Don’t work clay or saturated soils on the day you plant. Do your digging a bit ahead for the most normal soil structure to put the tree into.
Steps for How to Plant a Potted Tree
- Unpot the Tree. Speed matters. Don’t let the roots or rootball dry out. Care matters also. Don’t let the roots or rootball break. Your plant either will be “bare-rooted” and wrapped in some sort of protective substance or will come with the roots in a ball of dirt in some kind of container to hold it together — a peat pot, burlap, wire basket or bag. If it’s a metal pot, cut off the pot with tin snips. Tear it off if it’s made of paper. You have to get as much of the wrapping off as possible without actually harming the rootball. This may have you struggling with knives, wire cutters, etc. Untreated burlap can, if necessary, be planted with the tree.
- Double-Check Hole Depth. Do this by setting the tree in the hole to see how it fits. The “collar” (or “crown” or “root flare”) should be just at soil level or a little above (to allow for mulch). Usually it’s easy to see because you’ll be looking for the same soil line that the tree had at the nursery. Trees planted too deep can die within a few years, or develop problems as many as 15 years later.
- Set Tree in Hole. Then spread out the roots. If you see any girdling, damaged, or circling roots, cut them off. Try to lay the roots out in a way that they make good, straight contact with their new soil.
- Fill in Dirt. Place dirt over and around it. Don’t add anything to the dirt you’re going to put back into the hole to cover the tree roots — not peat moss, not fertilizer. It does more harm than good to spot fertilize a newly planted tree. This is because it tends to make the soil around the tree roots of a significantly different composition from the soil next to it. Water doesn’t move normally across the difference. The result is a tree that’s liable to be abnormally wet, or too dry. Don’t bury incompletely decomposed organic litter around the seedling tree either. This can mess up the pH, the nutrient balances and the populations of microscopic soil creatures. On the other hand, fully composted organic material that is evenly distributed across the top of the ground in your young tree’s area could be helpful. Stomp dirt all around it to be firm and create a depression into which water can settle.
- The First Soaking. When soil is dry, watering the tree as soon as possible after planting is critical for its survival. Use water also for the final settling of the soil. If additional settling occurs, add more soil, but don’t step on the wet soil around the tree.
- Mulch. Mulching the surface of the soil around your newly planted trees two to four inches deep does help them by controlling competition and gradually releasing nutrients. In nature, trees mulch themselves every fall. By keeping weeds away, retaining water and moderating the soil temperature, mulch improves the chances of survival for your tree. But never let mulch pile up against the trunk. After mulching the planting pit, brush back the mulch that is in contact with the trunk.
- Avoid Staking. Natural flexing is necessary for the plant to develop a normally strong trunk and roots. Use staking only if needed to hold the tree up until the roots have become established (usually within a year). To stake, use one or two wooden stakes (pipe or rebar are too hard to pull out), which have been pounded firmly into undisturbed soil. Place the tie about a third of the way up the tree in order to allow maximum trunk movement. Use soft, flat tie material (inner tube, flat soaker garden hose, commercial products). Never use straight twine or electric or any other type of wire against a trunk. Remove stakes and ties as soon as possible. Trees are frequently girdled by ties that people forgot to take off.
- Prune. But do not prune the tree top to “compensate for root loss.” That’s a myth. You may prune to take off broken, rubbing and weak branches, but try not to remove more than 1/5 of the branches.
- Dirt Dam. Build a circular dirt dam to create a basin effect around the outer edge of your tree planting area to retain water. Trees need water that soaks in deeply to establish good root systems. Water trees at the first year or two and during a drought. Let the root zone dry out between waterings unless your tree is a swamp variety. Five to 15 gallons a week is typical.
- Care After Planting. Young trees benefit if they are irrigated, fertilized and weeded, being a crop like any other. Water them at least twice a week. Regularly rescue them from weed and grass competitors. Or, easier and better yet, mulch around them so thoroughly the competition doesn’t get through. If your trees don’t grow well and aren’t an obviously healthy green color, they need fertilizer. Spread some manure from your barnyard. However, there’s such a thing as too much nitrogen, so spread it in reasonable amounts.
Trees to Reject
The most important tree planting tips aren’t just those related to getting healthy trees started, but also about avoiding certain trees and problems. Here are some things to look out for:
- Any tree that can’t stand up without support.
- Any tree with bark wounds on its trunk. (Look under the tree wraps.) Such a tree has a much lower chance of survival.
- Any big tree in a small pot. An eight-foot tree with a trunk that’s one inch in diameter needs a rootball about one and a half feet in diameter to be healthy.
- A tree with kinked or girdling roots. However, it’s hard to detect these because they are often deep within the rootball.
- Species known to cause problems by dropping limbs, raising sidewalks, getting pests and diseases, or perishing from climate extremes.
- Look out for varieties that are merely ornamentals — such as “flowering almonds” or “flowering plums, quince, pears, etc.” They grow flowers, but not necessarily nuts or fruit.
Excerpted from The Encyclopedia of Country Living by Carla Emery (Sasquatch Books). For many more tips about planting trees, see Best Trees for Your Yard and Home Landscaping Tips: Simple Home Improvements That Add Value.
