Planting Bare root trees

garydm1985

Hello!

I am a bit of a novice when it comes to the garden, so any help is appreciated.

I am due to receive 20 bare root japanese evergreen conifers that are bare rooted and have a few years growth and stand about one meter high. 

When I agreed to buy them I didnt realise that there is a preferred time to plant bare root trees so I am after a bit of afvice on whether I am able to plant them at this time of year, or if i am able to store them long term?

I live in Scotland so the ground is always wet!

thanks 

Gary

Dave Morgan

Get them in the ground asap. Even though the wrong time of year you couldn't store them. Keep them well watered over the summer as well. A good drench weekly, maybe twice weekly if it's warm.

a1154

How come someone sold you them out of season, where are they coming from ? Im in scotland and it its very dry and sunny here, i would be very worried if i had bare root arriving. 

plant pauper

Homebase have bare root hedging on offer right now. Very odd!

Put them in a bucket of water for ~30mins, no longer and get them in the ground asap.

Prepare the planting area with some long term feeding as well before they go in. A handful of bonemeal will do the trick.

Topbird

Bare root stuff can't be kept hanging around at this time of year so make sure you are ready to put the trees straight into the ground.

While you're waiting for them to arrive get out there and prepare the soil where they are to go. Make sure it's well dug and, if necessary, incorporate organic matter. That way you are ready to get them in as soon as they arrive. 

If the soil is dry (parts of Scotland have been unseasonably dry this spring) you can start giving it a good soak so the soil is just moist (not wet) when you start planting.

When the trees are delivered put them in a sheltered / shady spot to stop the roots drying out. I usually give bare root stuff a drink just before planting by plunging the rootball in a bucket of water for about 20mins.

After you've planted the trees give them a good soak (a bucket of water each - unless the ground is sodden) and then lay a 4" mulch of organic material around the base of the trees ( but away from the trunk). 

Then be prepared to water them once a week with a good drenching unless you have a lot of rain. The soil wants to be moist but not wet through.

Good luck - I have planted bare root at this time of year when we had a very cold spring and everything was several weeks behind. It means a bit more work in terms of watering but you should be ok if the trees are sound to start with.

garydm1985

Thanks for the replies folks. I ordered them on ebay. It was potentially a too good to be true deal but I will dig them in and water well and hopefully they survive!

Regards

Gary

Fairygirl

Gary - as already said, give them a good soak before you plant, and keep an eye on them after planting till you see new growth. It has been freakishly dry up here for a couple of months, but it will also depend what the soil's like you're planting them into. The old method of sticking your finger into the soil every few days is a useful one!   Some areas of my garden are fine as they're shady, and the clay is still quite damp. Other parts have needed watering. 

Good luck with them - the dry weather won't be around forever anyway 

garydm1985

I soaked them in water before I planted them and I have been drenching them regularly but they are still turning brown/orange which I think means they are dying unfortunately! Is there anything I can do to bring them back to life?

Thanks

Gary