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Donut shape
Select an appropriate spot to plant your tree or shrub. Dig a hole that is shallow but wide, giving the roots room to spread. The hole should be donut shaped, with a mound in the middle over which the roots are carefully spread.
Photo by Ruta Smith
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Settling in
A stick placed across the hole will show if you’re at the correct depth. After settling the plant with the roots draped across the mound, gently backfill the hole, covering the roots. Firm the soil to remove air pockets, but don’t step on the soil to compact it.
Photo by Ruta Smith
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Protect the root flare
Be sure to keep the root flare, where the topmost root emerges from the trunk, at or slightly above ground level. Mulch, leaving a bare area near the stem, and water, but don’t drown, your new plant.
Photo by Ruta Smith
Winter is the perfect time to plant trees and shrubs in the South. Arbor Day, the traditional start to tree-planting season, is celebrated in South Carolina on the first Friday of December.
If you’re of a mind to plant trees to cover a large area, to establish your own fruit orchard, or to introduce rare, expensive, or hard-to-find trees in your landscape, you may want to consider ordering budget-friendly bare-root plants.
Bare-root plants, as the name implies, are trees, shrubs, roses, vines and herbaceous perennials that are sold, by mail order, without soil or containers around their roots. They are also devoid of leaves, because they are dug and shipped during the dormant season. They’re less expensive than container plants, so you can order rare specimens or bulk quantities without busting your budget.
High-quality plants are harvested when an order is received during fall and winter months, then carefully prepared for shipping. First, their roots are washed to remove soil. Then, they are dipped in a clay-based slurry to coat and protect the fragile roots from drying out. The roots are packed in moistened peat moss, wood chips or shredded paper, then wrapped in plastic and burlap before being boxed and shipped.
Planting bare-root plants requires a bit of faith on the part of the gardener. What you receive often resembles a small brown stick with roots on one end. But, with a little extra care, these young, vigorous plants are easy to establish.
As soon as you get your bare-root plants, it’s critical that you immediately unwrap and check the roots. Remoisten the packing material if it is dry. Keep the material around the roots damp, but not saturated. Store your plants in a cool, shady location until you’re ready to plant—within a day or two, at most.
Prior to planting, protect plants from freezing by placing them in an unheated but protected location, like a garage. If you can’t plant immediately, you can pot them in a container or heel them in by temporarily planting them on the north side of your home until you can plant them permanently.
Just before planting, soak bare roots in a bucket of tepid water for 30 minutes to one hour. Never leave roots in water for more than a few hours. If you have more than one plant in a bundle, be careful when separating tangled roots.
New research suggests a better way to prepare soil for planting trees and shrubs. Instead of digging and loosening a large hole and heavily amending soils, new recommendations suggest digging a wide, shallow hole and using amendments, like compost, sparingly. This encourages roots to spread beyond the walls of the planting hole. Heavily amended soils encourage roots to remain within the confines of the hole, which leads to circling roots that can “choke” or girdle a tree, shortening its lifespan.
To help ensure survival of bare-root plants, dig a hole that looks like a donut, not a bucket. Create a shallow depression, leaving a cone of soil in the center to support the plant’s crown and roots. Carefully spread roots over the cone, and, using your hands, replace backfill around the roots. Firm the soil to remove air pockets, but don’t step on the soil; this leads to irreversible compaction.
Finally, mulch. Use one to three inches of bark mulch or pine straw, keeping mulch well away from trunks and stems. If rodents or deer are an issue, a simple wire cage can minimize damage until plants are larger.
The most important step is to ensure the root flare—the part of the trunk where the topmost root emerges—remains at the same level or slightly above the ground around it. If the soil is loose or compacts easily, plant a little higher to allow for settling. The flare at the base of the trunk or stem should be visible above the soil line after you finish planting and mulching.
Water your new plants so they are thoroughly moist but not waterlogged. Water every other day for the first week or so, then only once a week (when no rainfall has occurred) during the first year. Don’t drown your new plants! If you aren’t sure if the roots are too dry or too wet, use your finger to test the soil two to four inches below the soil line.
Bare-root trees can be slow to come out of dormancy in spring; be patient. Don’t fertilize the first year. After that, a soil sample will tell you what, if anything, should be added.
AMY L. DABBS is an area horticulture agent for Clemson Extension based in Charleston County. Contact her at adabbs@clemson.edu.
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