The last 40 years I’ve been practicing (climbing and all the other related activities) in the 2 northern counties in Idaho, Bonner and Boundary. A lot of practicing!
Yup, that means I’m an Old F*** (insert your preferred letters)! It also means, I know some stuff about trees. Waaay too much for this article.
I am called to diagnose many “why is my tree looking sick” problems. One of the most common causes of poor tree growth occurs because of improper planting.
What follows is a series of pictures of the planting process and resulting tree growth over two growing seasons (2022 and 2023). Enjoy! And Learn!
Oh, and for those really caring to “Know Stuff About Trees,” in an easy-to-read and fast format, here is a link to educate yourselves:
For content related to this blog post, read these brochures on the Trees Are Good website:
Buying High Quality Trees
Tree Selection
New Tree Planting
Proper Mulch Techniques
Ugh! More reading, I understand. It’s Good Stuff, really!
Thanks for hanging in there.
Michael ISA Board Certified Arborist PN-0469B Skywalker Tree Care
The tree’s root ball with the container just removed. It had been kept in the retail nursery/container for at least 3 years. Not fit for planting as is.We cut the container off with a chainsaw and used a pressure washer to expose the root structure.Tree’s roots like to grow horizontally away from the trunk. Not encircling as in this picture. The process of root pruning begins, with a chainsaw. The poor tree was so root bound that hand saws and pruners couldn’t be used at first. I paid $500 dollars for this tree, BTW.Roots revealed, slowly.Roots revealed, slowly.Roots revealed, slowly.The roots had begun to girdle the main stem. A very common result of planting container trees left too long in their pots. Kills a lot of trees, sometimes 20 years after being planted. Retail nurseries keep them for economic reasons. One could question the ethics of charging $500 for this tree. It took an experienced arborist and helpers two hours to prune the roots properly before planting. It was a cold fall day, so there wasn’t any danger of the roots drying out.90-95% of the roots had to be pruned out of the root ball.90-95% of the roots had to be pruned out of the root ball.90-95% of the roots had to be pruned out of the root ball.Planted and mulched in October 2021.Planted and mulched in October 2021.Planted and mulched in October 2021.The sugar maple one year later in October 2022. The tree survived the root massacre. It didn’t grow much, had small leaves and some minor dieback as is evident in the pictures. I watered regularly all the growing season. The sugar maple one year later in October 2022. The tree survived the root massacre. It didn’t grow much, had small leaves and some minor dieback as is evident in the pictures. I watered regularly all the growing season. August 29, 2023: Robust growth! I mulched the tree again this year in spring (See mulch flyer at the “Trees Are Good” website mentioned above) and watered well every couple of weeks. Success!August 29, 2023: This picture is a terminal bud scar on one of the lateral branches. This marks the beginning of elongation for the second season of growth. August 29, 2023: This picture shows this season’s new growth which measures 32” from the terminal bud scar to the new terminal bud at the end of the branch. That’s a remarkable amount of growth. Success!
