Potting Hundreds of Trees
Potting and planting hundreds of trees is a huge, yet exciting undertaking.
Every year, I try to plant as many trees as I can. I feel strongly about reforestation and giving back to the earth, so the more trees planted, the better. Trees provide habitat and food for birds and other animals, they absorb carbon dioxide and potentially harmful gasses, and they release oxygen. Do you know… one large tree can provide a day's supply of oxygen for four people? The earth needs many, many trees! Recently, we received a shipment of 750 bare-root cuttings from JLPN, a three-generation family-owned tree company in Salem, Oregon. Bare-root trees are so named because the plants are dug from the ground while dormant, and stored without any soil surrounding their roots. Once the young specimens arrived, my gardeners and outdoor grounds crew hurried to pot them in nutrient-filled composted soil to keep them healthy until they can be transplanted in the ground.
Here are some photos.
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- It’s always exciting when trees arrive at the farm. Since I plant so many trees, I get most of them in the form of bare-root cuttings. Brian and Chhiring load one of two big boxes onto our trusted Polaris Ranger.
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- Then, Chhiring fills these large trug buckets with water in the Equipment Barn, where the bare-root cuttings will sit overnight.
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- Each bundle of 25 or 50 cuttings is first inspected for signs of damage, weather-induced stress, and insect or disease infestation before being placed in water.
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- All these bare-root cuttings from JLPN arrived in bundles of 25, 50, 75, and 100. They also range from a foot tall to about three feet tall.
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- JLPN’s cuttings are harvested in December, graded, and then held in cold storage until they are shipped out in spring.
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- The root portion of the plant is placed in the water and left to soak. This good soaking will help the plants get a better start.
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- Some of the trees in this shipment include Littleleaf Lindens, Parrotias, Japanese zelkovas, Katsuras, Cotinus, Ginkgo trees, and more. A large marker indicating the common name on one side and the botanical name on the other was made for each variety.
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- I wanted the bare-root cuttings potted-up in individual containers. The trees will only remain in these pots temporarily – eventually, they will be transplanted in various locations around the farm. We save pots whenever we can – they always come in handy for projects like these, and I always encourage the crew to reuse supplies whenever possible.
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- We use composted manure and top soil for potting our cuttings. Composting manure above 131-degrees Fahrenheit for at least a couple weeks will kill harmful pathogens, dilute ammonia, stabilize nitrogen, kill weed seeds and reduce any objectionable odors. I am so proud of the nutrient-rich soil we make here at the farm.
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- Once a good mound of compost is unloaded, Brian adds some good fertilizer and then mixes it into the compost.
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- In order to get all the seedlings potted as quickly as possible, it was “all hands on deck.” The crew created a very productive assembly line. Here, Chhiring prepares the appropriate pots for each variety.
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- Each pot is laid out with a small layer of soil ready for the tree and backfill. The crew has devised an efficient production line process for potting massive amounts of trees.
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- Each bare-root cutting is placed into an appropriately sized pot. The root section should fit into the pot without bing crowded at the bottom.
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- Here’s another bare-root cutting with a good example of a very fibrous root ball. Healthy bare-root trees get off to a more vigorous start because their abundant, roots have already had a chance to develop unrestricted.
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- Here, Brian shows how a tree is placed at the same level it was grown by the nursery – where the roots start and the top shoots begin.
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- The soil is then gently filled in around the roots, but not packed too tightly. The important thing is to keep the soil moist. Brian then pats the soil gently around the roots to ensure good contact.
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- As each tree is potted, it is placed in a row with all like specimens and the appropriate marker.
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- Some of these have leaves, but most do not. Bare-root cuttings are difficult to identify when there are no leaves, so it is important to keep them separated by cultivar and always properly marked.
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- These bare-root cuttings are Ginkgo biloba trees. Although ginkgos grow the world over, some of the oldest specimens are found in South Korea, Japan, and in China, where there is one that is reported to be more than three-thousand years old. Bare-root plants should not have any mold or mildew. The cuttings should also feel heavy. If they feel light and dried out then the plant probably will not grow.
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- These are Shumard Oak trees. The Shumard Oak, Quercus shumardii, is a stately tree with beautiful fall color. It is one of the largest of the oak species in the red oak group and can grow 50 to 90 feet tall becoming more open at maturity.
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- These are Cornelian Cherry Dogwood trees, or Cornus mas. Mature trees are flowering right now. I have a few on the farm. This tree is a deciduous shrub or small tree that is native to central and southern Europe into western Asia. Tight clusters of small star-shaped yellow flowers bloom in early spring, covering the tree before leaves emerge. Clean, medium-green foliage appears in summer, shortly followed by dark red fruits, ripening in July.
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- Chinese Dogwood is also known as Kousa Dogwood. The Kousa dogwood is a handsome, small- to medium-sized tree reaching a mature height of 30 feet.
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- The trees will be stored outdoors on one side of the Hay Barn. Weed cloth is placed in the area to keep everything neat and tidy.
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- Brian places two wide rows of weed cloth down to accommodate the many potted trees. It’s a good idea to place pots away from wooden structures, so they can be avoided when watering.
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- All like seedlings are kept together and loaded onto a wheelbarrow, section by section. The trees can now be moved to the designated location, where they will be maintained until they’re transplanted into the ground.
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- By afternoon, hundreds of bare-root cuttings are potted and carefully arranged outside. I am confident these trees will thrive in these pots and will be in excellent condition when it is time to plant them in their more permanent locations here at the farm.
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