When choosing a new tree for the landscape, most people take a look at its bark, the shape of its leaves or needles, its flowers and other attractive features. Some may consider how tall itap going to grow and if there’s room for it in the yard.
But few tree shoppers think about the most important part of a tree: its roots. Out of sight, out of mind.
Thatap why the average life expectancy for a landscape tree is less than 10 years. Too many trees are selected for their good looks, but then hastily plunked into a too-small planting hole thatap covered with soil and piled high with mulch.
Arbor Day is your chance to celebrate the holiday by planting a tree using the best practices recommended by CSU Extension. Research shows most landscape trees die because they’re planted too deep where air and water can’t reach roots.
Before buying your tree, call 811 to check for underground utilities at the planting spot. Then get ready to dig a wide, saucer-shaped planting hole thatap three times the diameter of the root ball. A hole this size may take time to dig, but itap worth the extra effort.
A wider planting hole helps reduce planting stress. It “allows the root system to grow rapidly to 400 percent of the root-ball size before being slowed by the lower oxygen levels of the site soil,” according to .
As soon as the planting hole is ready, set the root ball on the flat floor of undug soil, with the top of the root ball protruding 1 to 2 inches above the soil grade level. Remove any burlap, wire or container materials that could keep roots from growing.
Hold the tree in place and keep the root collar or trunk flare slightly higher than the surrounding grade. Fill in around the root ball with the soil leftover from the hole, but resist the urge to cover the top of the root ball or to pile soil around the trunk. Just cover the tree’s “knees” that taper down to the original soil level.
Add a layer of bark or wood chip mulch around the tree to help maintain soil moisture, but keep mulch away from the tree’s trunk.
Water newly planted trees to keep the soil moist but not soggy, and keep up with watering, especially during prolonged dry periods in summer and winter. Staking helps protect new trees from strong winds.
It takes time for a tree to get established in the landscape, about 1 year for every inch of trunk diameter. So plan to give your tree TLC the entire time itap settling in.
