Every
Spring and Fall people will purchase bare root trees to plant
and use either in their gardens or as bonsai. Bare root trees
are cheaper to purchase usually because the shipping costs
are cheaper since no soil is shipped with them.
So the
question has come up time and again on how to care for bare
root trees. Due to the fact the trees have no soil around
their roots, this means they need some special attention when
they are received. You cannot control shipping conditions
between you and the supplier. However after that, you can
control how they are handled once they arrive.
Here are
some tips for ensuring your trees arrive in good shape:
1) Order from a reputable dealer. Reputable dealers will ship
their trees not long after bare rooting them, and will take
the extra precautions to make sure your trees are disease
and pest free before they are shipped. They will also package
the trees in such a way that the roots stay damp and don't
dry out. Avoid buying bare root trees off places like Ebay,
you don't know how long those trees have been laying around.
Avoid buying from companies that do not list the approximate
size of the trees they are shipping. A company that I use
lists not only the approximate size range but also the approximate
age of the saplings they are shipping you. This way you have
an idea of what you are getting. I get catalogs regularly
in the mail for trees and some don't list the size, much less
the age of the saplings they are sending you. It's nice to
know if you are getting a three year old sapling versus a
one year seedling, or a three foot tall tree versus a six
inch tall sprout.
2) Know the approximate day they will arrive so you can arrange
to either be there to receive the package, have someone else
recieve the package for you, or leave a note for your friendly
delivery person where you want the package left. If you do
leave a note, a shady spot under a tree is preferable to the
hot asphalt of your driveway. Bare root trees cook on a driveway.
If it's quite cold outside, make sure the spot for the package
is out of the wind and sheltered from most of the weather
( Porch, partly covered deck, settled behind a bush near the
door...)
3) Be sure to have all your various soil components, pots,
and other needed items already purchased and ready to go so
when the trees arrive you can begin your planting adventure
and your trees won't be without soil for an even longer period
of time. It's best to plant your trees the same day they arrive.
Alright
so you have those trees in hand, they look healthy, and you're
ready to plant.
Now what?
Here's what to do next:
1) Carefully remove the trees from the package. Inspect the
roots. Gently prune away any damaged or diseased roots. Leave
everything else intact. Yes, this means leave the tap root
intact too. Why? In my experience with bare root trees, doing
any extensive root pruning either slowed the growth immensely
or the tree just did not thrive and eventually died, or never
grew at all. Leave the root pruning for after the tree has
had a year or two to recuperate. A tip here to keep in mind
is that bare root trees tend to do better if purchased and
planted in the Spring. In the Spring, trees are gearing up
for growth, and can therefore recover better from the stress
of being bare rooted and shipped. While I have certainly planted
bare root trees in the Fall, I have found a greater success
rate with those planted in the Spring.
2) Pre-planting Care. Here is where some bonsai enthusiasts
and tree-lovers differ. Never soak the tree for hours and
hours and days on end, you'll kill the poor things by drowning
them. However, a gentle soak for the five to ten minutes it
takes to mix up your soil is fine. Don't soak the trees for
more than a couple hours. Now some people will add things
to the soaking water. It could be things such as Superthrive,
Vitamin B1, root stimulating products, very diluted seaweed/kelp
fertilizer, or even diluted fish emulsion. Some use nothing
at all in the water. Shultz's has out a product for transplants
that contains B Vitamins and this is what I use. It's like
a third of the cost of expensive Superthrive. What one would
pay for four fluid ouces of Superthrive, gives you two full
liters of the Shultz's stuff. My advice here is to simply
use what works for you. (No matter what you use, always be
sure to read the directions on the labels first before use!)
There are also those people who plant the trees directly into
the soil without any soaking time. Again, do what works for
you in your climate area, or what gives you the best results.
This is also an ideal time according to Harry Harrington to
apply a tourniquet to do a ground layer if the root spread
needs work so that you can develop a nice nebari. (If you
are new to bonsai, please learn about air layering, ground
layering and other advanced techniques by reading up on them
before trying them on trees. Leave doing such things as tourniquets
for when you are more knowledgeable.)
3) Plant the tree into your soil you have just mixed. One
thing to note, especially for those just getting their first
trees who may have no prior experience with trees. Never plant
the tree so deep that you are burying a portion of the trunk
in the soil. The bark of a tree planted down in the soil can
rot, attract fungus and pests. It's just not a good scenario.
Plant the tree just deep enough that all the roots are covered
in soil up to the base of the trunk.
4) Once your tree is planted, water it well. I use the exact
same water I did the presoak with and water them with that.
Take the well watered tree and place it in a sheltered spot
out of the elements but where it can get sun and air outside,
but won't get frost. Check the tree for water regularly and
water when the soil feels dry on top. As the tree starts to
break bud, go ahead and give it some balanced fertilizer,
or a fertilizer with a high phosphorus content to help with
root growth. Always read the directions on the fertilizer,
you don't want to burn the roots! If you are planting a bare
root tree in the Fall: Skip the fertilizer for your tree is
dormant and keep this tree in a sheltered spot for the winter,
then move it out more into the open after the last frost has
passed in the Spring. You can store them with your other outdoor
trees for the winter, either mulched in or in an unheated
garage or shed too. Just be sure to give your tree water during
the winter too. Even though a dormant tree appears to not
need water, it still needs some, just not as much as during
the growing season.
You now
have a wonderful tree in a pot, it's leafed out, and growing.
What next? Well depending on it's vigor, you could start formative
pruning as long as the tree is growing vigorously and shows
no outward signs of stress. However, I have found that giving
the tree a full growing season of no pruning is the best way
to go. Depending on the species, even two years of growth
is best. Just fertilize the tree every couple weeks along
with your other trees you may already own. Once the tree is
established after a year or two of growth, full work can begin.
A note
on tree health: So you don't know what a healthy tree may
look like? Take a peek at what you have in your hand. An unhealthy
tree will possibly show signs of disease such as fungus on
the bark, dead branches without bark, bark missing on portions
of the tree, blackened slimy roots, or strange shaped/colored
formations on the roots that are not normal for the species.
A healthy tree will have good roots with no signs of disease
or rot, and will have it's bark intact. If you get ahold of
trees from a supplier that are unhealthy, contact the supplier
about replacements. If you cannot get satisfactory results,
don't do business with them again and use a different supplier.
I have
used one company in particular that has given me great service.
I have found their trees to be of good health and they package
the trees well for shipment. Their online catalog and Paper
catalogs list the sizes of the trees and the relative age
of the trees they ship. They also sell potted trees. If I
had a problem with a bare root tree all I had to do was call
them on the phone and they replaced the tree in question.
They ship within the United States and Canada. Their website
is: musserforests.com
