over the past couple years ive bought several 3'/4' white pine trees in the spring to plant in my yard and a few have died so this year i kept the burlap bag wrapped around the root ball (just removed the nails holding bag closed) hoping that by not disturbing the soil packed around the roots the plant shall do better . is this gonna work or do i have to cut down into the soil with a big knife and put some cuts in the burlap ?
do you remove burlap from root balls ?
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over the past couple years ive bought several 3'/4' white pine trees in the spring to plant in my yard and a few have died so this year i kept the burlap bag wrapped around the root ball (just removed the nails holding bag closed) hoping that by not disturbing the soil packed around the roots the plant shall do better . is this gonna work or do i have to cut down into the soil with a big knife and put some cuts in the burlap ?
White Pines are a really tough transplant because their roots are thin and go a great distance from the tree. The problem is more likely to be from an inadequate root ball than because you left the burlap on. Because of the limited roots, the rootball is likely to really fall apart while you are removing the burlap on a white pine. Make sure that no burlap is left above grade and exposed to the air because it can wick water up and away from the edge of the ball.
You might be able to get WP at that size in containers. That would be better than b&b for that tree.
You might be able to get WP at that size in containers. That would be better than b&b for that tree.
Remove any nails and especially if there is any rope. The new wire cages have big enough gaps between them that it isn't necessary to remove them. It's actually better to keep them on to help keep the root ball together while installing the tree. Cut the burlap 1/3 away from the top of the root ball. I've never had a problem with this method. In the old days when they used chicken wire around the root ball it was extremely important to remove it, now the wire is actually made to be installed.
Frequently when the plants are being dug, soil is inadvertently piled atop the root ball then burlaped.
I think it is very important to scratch down into that soil to identify where the soil line was when the tree was grown in the field to assure that the new planting height is correct.
Without doing this you may unknowingly be planting much deeper than the tree is able to tolerate.
I think it is very important to scratch down into that soil to identify where the soil line was when the tree was grown in the field to assure that the new planting height is correct.
Without doing this you may unknowingly be planting much deeper than the tree is able to tolerate.
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Anybody heard of burying a handful of nails when planting a tree??
Supposedly the nails naturally break down into usable iron that the trees love. Nowadays, people are using nails and wire cages that don't rust or break down very easily. Since that's the case, I remove the cage so the roots eventually don't get big enough and become "girdled" by the cage.
If you think the cages would rust away fairly quickly, then I leave them.
A couple of times too, I've bed edged around 3 year old plantings and the wire was still there and made it a pain to edge.
I go ahead remove the sack also. To me it's like the peat pots you can buy plants in. Supposedly they should break down, but at the end of the growing season in the garden, I can usually point out which plants had the peat pots as they didn't start as well.
Supposedly the nails naturally break down into usable iron that the trees love. Nowadays, people are using nails and wire cages that don't rust or break down very easily. Since that's the case, I remove the cage so the roots eventually don't get big enough and become "girdled" by the cage.
If you think the cages would rust away fairly quickly, then I leave them.
A couple of times too, I've bed edged around 3 year old plantings and the wire was still there and made it a pain to edge.
I go ahead remove the sack also. To me it's like the peat pots you can buy plants in. Supposedly they should break down, but at the end of the growing season in the garden, I can usually point out which plants had the peat pots as they didn't start as well.
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Even though half of the time its hard to take the wire off completely, if you can and keep the ball intact, its recommended to take it off completely. Reason for being is that alot of large tree's later down the road will have failure to to root problems, meaning with the wire basket still on the roots will wrap around the basket and can not move out into the soil. Also known as girdling roots. This practice has been done many times. Something to keep in mind if paying alot for trees.
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thanx for all the info everyone .
concerning the wire theres no wire / baskets
on these plants , ive been buying them
from home depots or lowes mostly and the root
balls are just wrapped in burlap .
and i didnt add that these root balls are only
around 18" in diameter which i think is most
the problem , i wouldnt buy them except im
only buying in early spring or late fall when
i can get a 3' / 4' tree at around $25 (cheap around here) which
has a 1 year warranty . so my attitudes been gamble
on them and if they dont go can return them .
and this refered to tree i left the burlap wrapped
completely on the root ball with the top of ball
about an inch under soil .
and im watering them at about 2 gallons every other day for first 2 months ,
with only one cup of basic fertilizer to start and another in
say 4 months .
concerning the wire theres no wire / baskets
on these plants , ive been buying them
from home depots or lowes mostly and the root
balls are just wrapped in burlap .
and i didnt add that these root balls are only
around 18" in diameter which i think is most
the problem , i wouldnt buy them except im
only buying in early spring or late fall when
i can get a 3' / 4' tree at around $25 (cheap around here) which
has a 1 year warranty . so my attitudes been gamble
on them and if they dont go can return them .
and this refered to tree i left the burlap wrapped
completely on the root ball with the top of ball
about an inch under soil .
and im watering them at about 2 gallons every other day for first 2 months ,
with only one cup of basic fertilizer to start and another in
say 4 months .
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3,086 Posts
I like to remove wires, burlap etc to prevent root girdling
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/1139.html
http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/naturalresources/DD7501.html
http://extension.usu.edu/forestry/HomeTown/Planting_RootBalls.htm
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/1139.html
http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/naturalresources/DD7501.html
http://extension.usu.edu/forestry/HomeTown/Planting_RootBalls.htm
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I like to remove everything, but havent always. I havent seen a real difference yet. I cant stand it however when a client gets a tree and plants it leaving the cage ends above ground for the mower to hit. It should be mulched anyways. Anyways to the point I wanted to get to. A few years ago a supplier in my area was getting trees wrapped in treated burlap. It wouldnt decompose for nothing. Several trees that I didnt plant that came this way died because the burlap didnt rot out even after 3 years. The dead trees came out still like the day they went in three years before.
The rule of thumb has always been - the top of the root ball is planted a couple of inches above the soil line. As one post stated the soil gets pushed up the trunk a bit during the balling process.
I always water them in around the outside of the ball to remome air pocket and peel back the burlap and tuck into the mud. Mulch over the top and dump a little water in at the base of the trunk to fill in any air pockets in the center, that may may have been wiggled open by all the handling.
Most all the burlapped balls we get are very wet heavy clay so we need to always mulch over. Otherwise its baked hard at the surface and retaining too much water under neath inside the ball.
A new practice by some scapers is to not remove anything. Even leaving the ropes tied across the top. Not a good idea ... and they have replaced enough shrubs to prove it.
I always water them in around the outside of the ball to remome air pocket and peel back the burlap and tuck into the mud. Mulch over the top and dump a little water in at the base of the trunk to fill in any air pockets in the center, that may may have been wiggled open by all the handling.
Most all the burlapped balls we get are very wet heavy clay so we need to always mulch over. Otherwise its baked hard at the surface and retaining too much water under neath inside the ball.
A new practice by some scapers is to not remove anything. Even leaving the ropes tied across the top. Not a good idea ... and they have replaced enough shrubs to prove it.
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thanx everyone .
im gonna paw off the soil from top
of the rootball and cut the top of
the burlap off and also cut slits down
the sides of the burlap in several places .
smallaxe it could be how your saying
that the rootball comes up the trunk of
the tree during wrapping process so with
me burying top of ball im ending up putting
tree in too deep and suffocating it . and
now that you mention it i remember seeing
bushes planted by pro landscapers at customers houses i cut
with the top of the ball exposed and the
burlap cut away from the top but still
hanging out around perimeter of the rootball so theyre
exposing it like your saying . thanx for the tip .
im gonna paw off the soil from top
of the rootball and cut the top of
the burlap off and also cut slits down
the sides of the burlap in several places .
smallaxe it could be how your saying
that the rootball comes up the trunk of
the tree during wrapping process so with
me burying top of ball im ending up putting
tree in too deep and suffocating it . and
now that you mention it i remember seeing
bushes planted by pro landscapers at customers houses i cut
with the top of the ball exposed and the
burlap cut away from the top but still
hanging out around perimeter of the rootball so theyre
exposing it like your saying . thanx for the tip .
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How many of you guys have dug a tree? This is the burlap decomposes with watering treated will last 9 months untreated less, Have you ever seen a basket before it is put on a tree even the good expensive one welds break sitting therebefore the tree enters the basket and cheap ones which are most common are even worse, secondly how big are white pine roots, Thirdly tree spades do push the dirt up around the trunk when digging and also drops it back when released in the basket. Tree farms are usually cheap damp land, the roots are deeper and the top of ball should be removed at time of digging, also you loosen the ball and fiber roots when removing basket and burlap and my past experience generally shows more shock because of this. I have never spaded a tree that died because of a basket. nylon rope yes cesil rope no.
I know this is an older post but interesting reading. I did a search because I always have cut off the wire cage and pulled back the burlap. I was at my local nursery yesterday and they recommend against it, saying that more damage can be done removing it, especially if it's not a tight ball. They say just cut the ties and pull it down a bit.
Pulling the burlap will usually do more harm than good...Some trees will go into shock if the burlap is removed from the top when planted. As far as acting like a wick....sure in theory, but in reality..it will onlly cause a problem in the driest of neglected conditions....so disregard the wick theory. I have a lot of experiance planting big trees up to 40 feet and I can assure you..removing the burlap is almost always a bad idea. The top 3 reasons I see causing failure are planting below grade, not watering immediatly upon installation, and the trunk being loose from the rootball.
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