Creating a New Allee at My Farm
I love planting allées of trees - they look so beautiful and dramatic along the carriage roads around my Bedford, New York farm.
In landscaping, an allée, or an avenue, is traditionally a straight path or road with a line of trees or large shrubs running along each side. In most cases, the trees planted are the same species or cultivar, so as to give a uniform appearance along the full length of the allée. Over the years I’ve designed several, including my majestic allée of pin oaks near my Equipment Barn, my linden tree allée near the stable, and my allée of Styrax leading to my tennis court. Recently, I decided to create another allée along the lower hayfield road leading to the woodlands - this one with beautiful London planes, Platanus × acerifolia. Last week, my outdoor grounds crew worked hard to get the area prepared and planted.
Here are some photos of this multiple-day project, enjoy.
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- If you follow my blog regularly, I am sure you’ve seen this photo of the carriage road leading to the woodlands. I’ve photographed it many times showing its changes through the seasons. My new allee is just past the trees in the open fields.
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- All my carriage roads are 12-feet wide. I wanted to be sure the new allee lined the edge of the road, but also had enough room for the trees to grow.
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- Ryan and Chhiring measure the area carefully. When selecting a location, always consider the tree’s growth pattern, space needs, and appearance.
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- For the first part of this project, we rented a Jr. Ryan sod cutter. The Ryan Company has been designing and selling turf care equipment for more than 60-years. Their sod cutter was actually created after the business partnered with a commercial landscaper named Art Ryan.
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- There are different types of sod cutters, but they all essentially cut grass at the roots so entire sections of sod can be removed to expose the bare ground underneath it.
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- Gardener’s twine is used to mark the new edge of this bed. The twine also serves as a guide for the motorized sod cutter.
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- Chhiring uses the twine for the straighter parts of the road.
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- And then landscape marking chalk spray for any curved areas.
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- This sod cutter weighs about 380-pounds. It cuts 12-inch widths of sod and can cut more than 100-feet per minute. This ground is quite dry and tough, so it takes a bit longer to cut through. Chhiring pushes the cutter forward following the lines and periodically checking to see his cuts.
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- Ryan rolls up the first strip behind Chhiring to check how deep it is and whether the cutter needs adjusting.
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- The sod is removed in sections, so it can be turned over to dry. This sod will go back into the compost pile.
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- Three rows of sod were cut to create the new planting beds along both sides of the carriage road. This sod is ready to be picked up.
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- Chhiring and Phurba rake up any sod remnants in the bed.
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- Once it is all raked, the area is ready for the next phase – making the holes for planting.
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- Next, Ryan positions the trees where they will be planted. London planes are easy to transplant and can grow fast in almost any soil. They can also develop massive trunks with spreading crowns, so they need lots of space to develop.
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- Chhiring uses the same marking spray to indicate exactly where each tree is positioned.
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- For the holes, Chhiring uses our auger. An auger is a tool with a giant helical screw blade for boring holes for posts or trees.
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- With the auger attached to the back of the tractor, Chhiring drives directly over the marked spot.
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- And then digs a hole the length of the auger screw. The rotating blade is called a “flighting” and acts as a screw conveyor to remove the drilled out material. The rotation of the blade causes the material to move out of the hole being drilled.
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- Here is what is left after the auger digs the hole. It is such a time-saving tool.
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- Carlos drops some nutrient-rich compost near every hole – compost we make right here at my farm.
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- Then he sprinkles a generous amount of fertilizer on the compost and on the existing soil. The elements are mixed together and some of it is placed into the hole before the tree is planted.
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- Always have a good quality tree fertilizer on hand to mix with the soil. We use dryroots, a natural granular fertilizer with nitrogen, potassium sulfate, iron, magnesium, kelp meal, vitamins, and humic acids to improve soil and plant health.
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- These bamboo stakes always come in handy. One six to seven foot stake is planted with each tree to give it added support as it develops.
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- Carlos inserts the stake securely into the back edge of the hole.
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- Phurba takes each tree and loosens up the bottom roots. This stimulates new growth and promotes good aeration.
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- One by one each tree is carefully placed into its assigned space. These holes are about a foot deep. Planting depth is one of the most important factors. Planting a tree too deep can kill it. “Bare to the flare” is the rule of thumb. Look for the root collar or root flare – the bulge just above the root system where the roots begin to branch away from the trunk. The root flare should be just above the soil surface.
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- Once the tree is placed into the hole, Phurba takes another look to be sure the tree is perfectly aligned and that the best side of the tree is facing toward the road. It’s the small details that can make all the difference.
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- Then he backfills the hole.
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- And gently steps around the root ball and soil to ensure there aren’t any air pockets.
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- Here, Phurba rakes the soil surrounding the tree so it is neat and tidy.
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- Next, Gavin follows with the jute twine – tying the stake to the tree for added support and direction. He uses three pieces of twine – near the top, in the middle and at the bottom – each just tight enough to keep the tree secure, but not break it.
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- Knots should be very simple. I always teach every member of the crew to twist the twine before knotting, so the tree or vine or cane is not crushed or strangled.
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- In all, we’ve planted 46-trees along this carriage road. In my next blog, I will show you what else we planted and how it all looks when finished. You will love it.
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