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Planting and Transplanting: Transplanted

PRUNING TRANSPLANTED STOCK. Suggestions with reference to pruning are covered more fully in the chapter on "Pruning." One of the fundamental practices to be followed in connection with the correct transplanting of stock is to prune all branches and roots properly. Any branches that are crowding should be carefully pruned at the time of transplanting, especially if the transplanting is done in the spring; otherwise it is a better practice to leave the stock standing in its new position during the winter and perform the necessary pruning of the top in the early spring or later winter months. An exception to this practice is the case of maple trees, which should be pruned before sap starts to flow in the spring. With trees and shrubs having a heavy top, at least one-third of the top should be removed at the time of transplanting, or before the stock has commenced to make its new growth in the spring. This is done to offset the loss of roots incurred in moving and it is essential except with nursery stock which has been frequently root-pruned at the nursery. All bruised and broken roots should be carefully pruned, with a clean cut, at the time of transplanting. Only in this manner will roots heal and possible decay be avoided. Save as many roots as possible when moving.

WINTER PROTECTION OF NEWLY TRANSPLANTED STOCK. A necessary feature in caring for newly transplanted plants, especially those set in the fall, is to apply a suitable mulch for winter protection. This applies to all kinds of transplanted material. A mulch, in heavier clayey soils, reduces the possible injury caused by changes of temperature and consequent heaving of the plants. A proper mulch of fresh stable litter, applied three to six inches in depth, keeps the soil at an even temperature and prevents extreme freezing conditions from injuring the roots. A mulch which is largely straw may provide a refuge for rabbits, rats, and mice which frequently girdle plants during the winter months.

TRANSPLANTING TREES. Some plants, particularly trees, may be transplanted successfully while young but are more difficult to move as they get older. Examples of this are the hickory and oaks, which, with the exception of the pin oak, form deep tap roots. The tulips and magnolias are hard to move because they have few fibrous roots; while maples and elms, on the contrary, have many fibrous roots and are moved more easily. Junipers transplant more readily when older, for they then have a more extensive lateral root system. SEASON TO TRANSPLANT, AND PREPARATION OF HOLES. Large trees should be transplanted when they are dormant. It may be necessary to move other material before the growing period has stopped, but this should seldom be attempted with older trees. Large trees are moved in winter, and it is preferable to move them when the ground is frozen. The ball of earth on the roots will then remain fairly intact and there will be a minimum of root loss when moving. Holes for the trees should be dug with straight sides and with bottom rather convex or slightly rounded. This is much to be preferred to making holes bowlshaped and it permits an opportunity to spread the roots more naturally than in a hole where the middle is deeper than the sides. A common error in transplanting large trees is that of providing a hole not sufficiently large to receive the roots of the tree without cramping. A hole for a large tree greater than five to six inches in diameter should not be less than eight to ten feet in diameter, and never less than three feet in depth. The most common method of transplanting large trees is the method of cutting the roots down to a ball approximating eight to ten feet in diameter. Trees transplanted in this way are frequently subjected to a root-pruning process during the previous summer, or preferably during the previous year.

It has been stated by authorities, who are in a position to know, that the ideal method of transplanting trees is by saving all of the root system, if possible. This process is known as "combing" out the root system. Under this method all of the roots are traced down to their fine ends and then the roots are tied up in burlap in order to prevent excessive drying out of the fine fibrous roots. Transplanting in this way requires much more care, but it assures less loss than the other method, which is a violent process and requires strong recuperative powers in the tree which is transplanted. DRAINAGE OF TREE PITS. Ample drainage must be provided for large trees, especially when set in clayey soil. The soil with which trees are transplanted is normally a medium loam, not too compact in character. This soil is much more porous than the heavy clay soil in which the hole for the tree may be excavated. Consequently, the natural tendency during wet seasons is for the water to drain toward the tree pit and to "water soak" the loose topsoil in which the tree has been set. This really places the tree in a reservoir. A tree will survive such treatment if it can withstand extreme moisture conditions, or if the water drains slowly away. However, the tree is generally killed during the first season, or may survive in a much weakened condition. The normal method of draining trees is to provide a four-inch tile connected with some outlet in the form of existing tile drains, or lower ground, so that the water may be taken away. In the event that there is no opportunity to provide this type of drainage it is desirable to excavate a hole to a greater depth-approximately three to five feet and thereby provide below the tree a space of at least twelve inches which should be filled with broken stone or other porous material and in which water resulting from normal rainfall may be collected. In this way the root growth may be kept from drowning.

METHOD OF PROCEDURE IN TRANSPLANTING LARGE TREES. It is economical in transplanting large trees to adopt the following method of procedure.

In selecting large trees for transplanting great care should be exercised to select only those individual trees which show a vigorous growing condition and which are more or less symmetrical. 1. Select and stake the proposed location where the tree is to be transplanted. 2. Cover this space, over a diameter of at least ten feet, with ten to twelve inches of fresh stable manure. This is more economical than to excavate the hole and fill it with topsoil for the reason that this topsoil is apt to freeze and be useless at time of transplanting. 3. Preserve a single large pile of topsoil (rather than a number of small piles, which freeze in a severe winter) and cover this with twelve or fifteen inches of stable litter, in order to protect it from freezing and to make it readily available when the trees are transplanted. It is quite essential that this topsoil should be friable at the time of planting. 4. When conditions are favourable for transplanting, remove the stable manure from the place where the tree is to be planted, excavate the hole, dig up the tree, place it in the hole, cover the roots with the topsoil, and then replace the stable manure over this area. This covering will then serve as a mulch and as protection against further freezing, and against evaporation in hot weather. After trees are planted guy wires should be set to prevent wind storms from bending or tipping the trees over. It is never a safe practice to transplant any large tree without supporting it with wires. The reason for attaching guy wires to newly transplanted trees is twofold. First, to be sure that the tree does not blow over during a severe windstorm, and second, to keep the tree from swaying without blowing over and thereby loosening the root system and letting air get into the soil around the roots. This second reason for guying trees is an important one, and is sufficient in itself to require a very careful tightening of the wires which hold the trees in place. In placing guy wires on the trunk it should be protected from injury by the use of pieces of hose, bagging, or canvas.

PROTECTION AFTER TRANSPLANTING. Large trees when transplanted must be amply protected against evaporation during the hot summer months. This protection is given to the tree in two ways. First, a mulch consisting of straw, litter, or leaves is applied to a depth of six to eight inches, over an area eight to ten feet in diameter, immediately around the base of the tree. Second, the trunk is wrapped with burlap or bagging to prevent excessive drying out. Many newly transplanted trees are injured by the hot rays of the sun through lack of this protection which prevents a drying out of the bark and cambium tissue on the exposed trunk of the tree. This drying out often results in injury to large trees (as shown in Plate VII, Page 75) to such an extent that the bark cracks, dries up, and becomes loosened from the trunk of the tree thus exposing the inner wood immediately under the bark. It is quite as necessary to provide suitable mulch during the winter months of the next season after the transplanting, as to provide one in the summer months. In a newly transplanted tree a fine root growth is developed near to the surface of the ground, and this root growth is easily injured by any excessive freezing and thawing which may occur during a severe winter. 1 apply PRUNING TREES AFTER TRANSPLANTING. After the transplanting, the top and the root growth of a tree must be balanced. It is necessary to remove a portion of the root growth in order to make it practicable to handle the tree, and the removal of roots and lifting of the tree from its existing location shuts off much of the supply of moisture which goes into the tree. In every plant that is moved there is stored within the plant a certain amount of food material which becomes available immediately when growth starts. A portion of the top of the tree should therefore be removed in order to lessen the possible areas of evaporation and areas of leaf growth, which draw heavily upon the store of food in the tree; otherwise this reserve supply is apt to be exhausted before root growth is started sufficiently to provide the tree with new moisture. There are instances when it is not necessary to prune because the full benefit of the top is immediately required. The latter, however, will require more care for the tree during the summer months and entails a greater liability to loss because of the unbalanced condition of the top and root growth. A tree that is properly pruned at the time of transplanting will, within three years, equal in development a similar tree that is transplanted, not pruned, and given much necessary additional care.