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Click to download our Tree Planting Secrets PDF or scroll down to read on & bookmark this page.
CHOOSING THE PROPER TREE
Trees can reduce your electric bills, supply firewood for heating, make your property more beautiful, & provide a high ROI when reselling your property. Consider which tree species are right for the job & where to plant them.
Palm trees are great for small spaces in subtropical climates
There are many things to consider when choosing a tree. Think about how you want the tree to work with you.
• Is it for creating shade?
• Do you need a barrier?
• Are aesthetics important to you?
• Do you want food production?
• Do you intend to attract wildlife?
Deciduous trees offer vibrant fall colors
Deciduous trees lose their leaves for part of the year.
Maple, Oak, Ash, Aspen
Many deciduous tree species grow quite large, live longer, help build biomass & build soil with leaf matter. They can also be harvested for wood or lumber. These trees are valuable for erosion control, shade & beauty. They can be considered “messy” but they can be planted away from structures to prevent damage from falling limbs & heavy leaf matter.
Evergreens in Yosemite National Park
Evergreen trees most commonly have needles instead of leaves.
Pine, Ceder, Cypress, Fir, Live oak
Many evergreens are smaller than deciduous trees, but a few varieties can get very large. They are great for providing privacy and helping to block wind exposure. When planted together with deciduous trees, they can help build biomass and diversity.
CHOOSING THE LOCATION
When placed in the proper location, trees can help reduce your electric bills by providing shade protection from the sun, but you must be especially careful not to plant trees too close to a structure or foundation.
View from a deck providing shade and framing thesunset in Cañones, New Mexico
Stand back away from the location & imagine how large the tree is going to be in 10 or 20 years. Ask yourself:
• Will limbs fall on the roof, or leaves in the gutters?
• Will the roots cause problems to plumbing?
• Will the tree provide shade when it’s needed most?
• Will the tree block the site line to your front door?
• Will planting on a berm block optimal water flow?
• Will the soil allow the roots to ground in?
• Will the tree hinder solar power production?
95-year old Helen Weidner stands next to a tree she planted from a Pecan as a child.
STEPS FOR PLANTING A TREE
Using a berm and basin method to plant your tree will greatly increase your tree’s survival rate, passively provide water, and increase growth rate.
Step 1
Dig a square (not round) hole 1.5 times the size of the width of tree’s root ball. Since you will be building a berm around the base of the tree, make the depth of the hole only half the depth of the root system. To save time, when digging your hole, pile soil to one side of the hole making it easily accessible to rake back around the root ball.
Step 2
Before placing your tree in the hole, spread rock phosphate and mycorrhiza fungal inoculant in and around the hole (follow instructions according to tree size).
Step 3
Rigorously loosen the tree roots from the root ball making sure the roots are no longer bound up like matted hair but rather loose and free. Insure the larger roots are trimmed & point towards the corners of your square hole when placed.
Step 4
Dig a basin next to the tree with the deepest area 6–8 ft away from the base. The basin’s edge to edge dimensions depend on the space available and depth should gradually slope for ease in mowing. Use the soil you dig out of the basin to build up the berm around the top half of the root ball keeping the same soil height the tree had in the pot. Pack the soil down around the roots while encouraging the roots to spread as wide as possible.
Step 5
Water the root ball SLOWLY. Be sure to flood the hole to push out any air pockets.
Step 6
Add a 3–6 inch deep heavy helping of mulch on top of the root ball. Using your hands, draw the mulch away from the base of the trunk making what looks like a moat around it in order to keep moisture and fungus damage at bay.
TREE PLANTING TIPS
Just Before Planting
If it hasn’t rained or the soil where you plan to plant isn’t moist, water the soil liberally the day before planting.
Homemade root stimulator
A very inexpensive way to make a root stimulator yourself is to cut the ends of willow tree limbs, put them in a five gallon bucket, and add 4 gallons of water. Let it sit in a shady spot for 3-5 days and you will have some of the best root stimulator money can’t buy :)
Trimming
After the tree goes dormant, in late fall or in the winter, start trimming the tree back 5–10% (as much as 25% for hearty deciduous trees like oaks and poplars). This will encourage the tree to send its energy to the roots to establish a strong root system for future growth.
Compost
Add compost every season and add an additional layer of heavy mulch in the winter and summer months for the first few years. Most trees will not need fertilizing beyond what’s in a good compost mixture, but if you want fast growth you can kick it up a notch with a humanure, urine, or other healthy animal poop. Do not use factory farming poop or horse manure which can have heavy chemicals, fungicides, herbicides, and other toxins.
Discount Trees
If you get your trees from a local nursery, you can often get last years leftovers for 50–75% off. I recently purchased 16 trees for a project for 60% off clearance. The trees were root bound or container bound so you need to work a little harder to cut the binding free but these trees can be salvaged if you cut the roots free, place them in square holes and use a root stimulator to build a new more sprawling root system.
Thank you for subscribing to our email list!
Click to download our Tree Planting Secrets PDF or scroll down to read on & bookmark this page.
CHOOSING THE PROPER TREE
Trees can reduce your electric bills, supply firewood for heating, make your property more beautiful, & provide a high ROI when reselling your property. Consider which tree species are right for the job & where to plant them.
Palm trees are great for small spaces in subtropical climates
There are many things to consider when choosing a tree. Think about how you want the tree to work with you.
• Is it for creating shade?
• Do you need a barrier?
• Are aesthetics important to you?
• Do you want food production?
• Do you intend to attract wildlife?
Deciduous trees offer vibrant fall colors
Deciduous trees lose their leaves for part of the year.
Maple, Oak, Ash, Aspen
Many deciduous tree species grow quite large, live longer, help build biomass & build soil with leaf matter. They can also be harvested for wood or lumber. These trees are valuable for erosion control, shade & beauty. They can be considered “messy” but they can be planted away from structures to prevent damage from falling limbs & heavy leaf matter.
Evergreens in Yosemite National Park
Evergreen trees most commonly have needles instead of leaves.
Pine, Ceder, Cypress, Fir, Live oak
Many evergreens are smaller than deciduous trees, but a few varieties can get very large. They are great for providing privacy and helping to block wind exposure. When planted together with deciduous trees, they can help build biomass and diversity.
CHOOSING THE LOCATION
When placed in the proper location, trees can help reduce your electric bills by providing shade protection from the sun, but you must be especially careful not to plant trees too close to a structure or foundation.
View from a deck providing shade and framing thesunset in Cañones, New Mexico
Stand back away from the location & imagine how large the tree is going to be in 10 or 20 years. Ask yourself:
• Will limbs fall on the roof, or leaves in the gutters?
• Will the roots cause problems to plumbing?
• Will the tree provide shade when it’s needed most?
• Will the tree block the site line to your front door?
• Will planting on a berm block optimal water flow?
• Will the soil allow the roots to ground in?
• Will the tree hinder solar power production?
95-year old Helen Weidner stands next to a tree she planted from a Pecan as a child.
STEPS FOR PLANTING A TREE
Using a berm and basin method to plant your tree will greatly increase your tree’s survival rate, passively provide water, and increase growth rate.
Step 1
Dig a square (not round) hole 1.5 times the size of the width of tree’s root ball. Since you will be building a berm around the base of the tree, make the depth of the hole only half the depth of the root system. To save time, when digging your hole, pile soil to one side of the hole making it easily accessible to rake back around the root ball.
Step 2
Before placing your tree in the hole, spread rock phosphate and mycorrhiza fungal inoculant in and around the hole (follow instructions according to tree size).
Step 3
Rigorously loosen the tree roots from the root ball making sure the roots are no longer bound up like matted hair but rather loose and free. Insure the larger roots are trimmed & point towards the corners of your square hole when placed.
Step 4
Dig a basin next to the tree with the deepest area 6–8 ft away from the base. The basin’s edge to edge dimensions depend on the space available and depth should gradually slope for ease in mowing. Use the soil you dig out of the basin to build up the berm around the top half of the root ball keeping the same soil height the tree had in the pot. Pack the soil down around the roots while encouraging the roots to spread as wide as possible.
Step 5
Water the root ball SLOWLY. Be sure to flood the hole to push out any air pockets.
Step 6
Add a 3–6 inch deep heavy helping of mulch on top of the root ball. Using your hands, draw the mulch away from the base of the trunk making what looks like a moat around it in order to keep moisture and fungus damage at bay.
TREE PLANTING TIPS
Just Before Planting
If it hasn’t rained or the soil where you plan to plant isn’t moist, water the soil liberally the day before planting.
Homemade root stimulator
A very inexpensive way to make a root stimulator yourself is to cut the ends of willow tree limbs, put them in a five gallon bucket, and add 4 gallons of water. Let it sit in a shady spot for 3-5 days and you will have some of the best root stimulator money can’t buy :)
Trimming
After the tree goes dormant, in late fall or in the winter, start trimming the tree back 5–10% (as much as 25% for hearty deciduous trees like oaks and poplars). This will encourage the tree to send its energy to the roots to establish a strong root system for future growth.
Compost
Add compost every season and add an additional layer of heavy mulch in the winter and summer months for the first few years. Most trees will not need fertilizing beyond what’s in a good compost mixture, but if you want fast growth you can kick it up a notch with a humanure, urine, or other healthy animal poop. Do not use factory farming poop or horse manure which can have heavy chemicals, fungicides, herbicides, and other toxins.
Discount Trees
If you get your trees from a local nursery, you can often get last years leftovers for 50–75% off. I recently purchased 16 trees for a project for 60% off clearance. The trees were root bound or container bound so you need to work a little harder to cut the binding free but these trees can be salvaged if you cut the roots free, place them in square holes and use a root stimulator to build a new more sprawling root system.
