Hello all.
I've had my bare root fruit trees (from Aldi) for two weeks now and on advice from A4A members have kept them stored in the shed. However, the advice was for a couple of weeks. Should I plant them now despite the frosts?
Regards
Bluecar
If the ground is not hard from frost and not too muddy get them in. Its not the frosty temperatures itself that is the bother just the ground conditions. You can mulch the ground around the trees after planting to stop the soil from freezing and allow the roots to grow.
Plant any time it is OK to get a spade in the ground. If you cant get them in make sure you heel them in so the roots are covered in soil to keep them moist. Once planted they will be fine mulched or not. We are planting hedging plants at work today.
I planted mine after a fortnight and theyre doin' fine. They survive frosts, after all dont they! :tongue3:
Thanks for your comments. I'll get them in today.
Regards
Bluecar
Just go back from planting them - my fingers were hurting with the cold despite having gloves on!
I've covered the top soil with thick cardboard so that ought to give then some protection. The ground was quite damp but not water logged, so I didn't water them in. Was that right?
Regards
Bluecar
If you did firm the soil around the roots..that should be enough for now. I do admit that when planting trees in winter I don't tend to water them in neither. Soil is wet anyway and as the tree don't take water from soil for growing yet..roots just need moiture to keep the alive.
You do have to keep eye on the situation once the growht starts though..the roots need good contact to the soil and if the weather should turn dry this spring (on should hope so!) you propably need to give good drink for the roots to bring the soil into close contact with the roots...first year you should keep tree well watered anyway so nothing unusual there as such.
With newly planted trees, I prefer watering 'lots in one go and less often' - method...usually that is so..last summer my few new trees didn't get watered at all! Soil never did dry out.. :BangHead:
Goodlife, thanks for the tips about watering.
Regards
Bluecar
Mine are in my currently unheated and open greenhouse... by open I mean it's vented adn one door is open, so it's not providing any temperature help but is acting as a windbreak. Along with a bunch of fruit plants (20 assorted blackcurrants and raspberries) and 60-odd strawberries there are seven fruit trees: an apricot, a sweet cherry, a victoria plum, two morello's and two peaches. THe plan is for them and another apricot to go in the garden in place of the furthest veg bed from the house and also the morellos will replace a couple of decorative shrubs along the north-facing wall that forms my southern boundary... Given the price of fruitthese days I've decided that if Aldi are goig to sell me fruit trees for 4 quid a go (and they weren't bad, decent enough roots non all of them) then I ought to take advantage...