Planting Spruce Seedlings
By Bill Hirst, Tue Jan 10th
Did you know that Black Hills Spruce trees have dark, dark brownbark and dark, dark green needles which are their leaves. Fromafar, it takes surprisingly few of any evergreen tree to appearblack. It takes even fewer of the Black Hills Spruce treestogether to make an apparently black forest. Yes, the BlackForest of Bavaria in Germany is named for it's evergreen trees.One-third of the Black Forest today is Spruce, and Pine treesare close behind at 30%. Evergreen trees are (for)ever green,but none is more deeply, darkly green than mountain area Sprucetrees like the Black Hills Spruce. There are no species ofEuropean Spruce trees named for the Black Forest, but the RockyMountains' Spruce trees which have remained for millions ofyears in the Black Hills were named well. So, guess what percent of the trees covering the Black Hillsare Black Hills Spruce trees? The Ponderosa Pine tree, alsoknown as the Western Yellow Pine tree makes up over threequarters of the area's trees, 76%! Would you believe just 4% ofthe trees in the Black Hills are Black Hills Spruce Trees?Yeesh. Spruce trees are not just valuable as evergreen trees suitablefor rich, year 'round, dark green color from their denseneedle-leaves, and of course, for Christmastime.
One of our customers worked at the Homestake Gold Mine aftergraduating from college. Left over from the 1876 Gold Rush tothe Black Hills of South Dakota, where George Custer wassupposed to chase away the prospectors bothering the SiouxIndians, but instead tried the opposite and got himself killed,the Homestake Gold mine is still operating today. The mine is agreat tourist attraction, ranking right up there with MountRushmore, Crazy Horse Mountain, the indoor hot springs pool inthe town of, well, Hot Springs. The Homestake Mine has producedmore gold than any other mine in the entire western hemisphere,including the huge open-pit surface mines of Nevada. Guess what species of tree from the forest of the Black hillshas been favored for the timber supports and structures down inthe mine all these 120-odd years ? It was the aptly named BlackHills Spruce, because the Spruce wood is better able to stand upto being constantly bumped and being constantly wet (youwouldn't believe just how wet underground mines are our customertells us) than the far more locally common Ponderosa Pine wood. How about that? If you want to mine your property with anunderground operation, you'll be able to cut down your matureSpruce trees in just 30 years after you plant the seedlings youbought from SeedlingsRus, or maybe just half that time, 15years, if you get 6-foot saplings. Planting seedlings
All people handling seedlings need to help with the life supportof your plants. Seedlings are like fish out of water and needcare which is often overlooked between the time the seedlingsare lifted and transplanted. Improper care means highermortality. Do not try and reinvent the wheel. You must protectseedling from moisture and temperature extremes, as well asphysical damage. Seedlings are living and should be handledcarefully. For a higher survival rate, treat trees carefully andplant them immediately. I like to have a backup plan forplanting if the weather turns bad. I will sometimes switch fromlining out the seedlings to potting them up if I realize thatthe soil conditions will not be right for an extended lenght oftime. If planting must be delayed a few days, keep the plants ina cold, protected place with air circulation between the trees.Keep the trees out of the rain and wind. To check if the treesneed water, feel the media at the roots.. If it isn't damp,water the trees and allow the excess water to drain. In cool,damp weather, the biggest threat to these trees is from mold.Try to keep out of soil seedlings moist by either restrictingwater loss with a water vapor barrier or by wetting the roots atregular intervals. While handling or planting try to reducetemperature and air movement around the seedlings. Windy dayscan dry out seedlings so consider waiting for calmer weather.Once your soil conditions are correct OUR FREE USE PLANTERS willmake planting a snap so its will be worth waiting for goodplanting conditions. HOW TO PLANT Ideal planting days are cool and cloudy with little or no wind.If possible, avoid planting on warm, windy days. The soil shouldbe moist not wet. Care in planting is more important than speed.Make sure the roots are never allowed to become dry. Bare rootseedlings should be carried in a waterproof bag or bucket withplenty of moist material packed around the roots to keep themdamp. Ideally, bare root boxes should be kept refrigerated orpacked in ice or snow. Don't freeze the trees. Competition fromweeds, grass, brush or other trees is very detrimental tosurvival and growth of seedlings. Choose areas free from thiscompetition or clear at least a three-foot square bare spotbefore planting. Seedlings should not be planted under the crownof existing trees, or closer than 6 feet to existing brush.Avoid areas near walnut trees. Brush aside loose organicmaterial such as leaves, grass, etc., from the planting spot toexpose mineral soil. If organic matter gets into the plantinghole, it can decompose and leave air spaces. Roots will dry outwhen they grow into these spaces. Open up the hole, making surethe hole is deep enough for the roots to be fully extended. Ifroots are curled or bunched up, the tree will not be able totake up water correctly, will often weaken
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and die, or may blowdown later due to poor root structure. Take a tree out of yourplanting bag or bucket only after a hole is ready. When exposed,the fine roots can dry out in as little as 30 seconds. Seedlingshoots and roots lose water to air, roots require moreprotecting.Unlike leaves ,they do not have stomata (closeableopenings on the surface of the leaves) or any waxy coatings tohelp reduce water loss. If the roots apear dry they are probablydead. Now I know you are thinking,"I will place them in abuckect of water and store them there until planting". This willnot work. Submerge plants for no longer that a couple ofminutes. Placing them in water cuts them off from oxygen.Remember to remove the container before planting a containerizedtree. A helpful hint to all those new gardeners just starting isto remember to always plant green side up. Hold the seedling inplace in the hole, making sure the roots are straight, fullyextended and that the tree is neither too shallow or too deep inthe hole. Fill hole, allowing soil to fall in around the roots.Tamp with hands or with your heel. Don't crush the roots byjumping up and down around the seedling like there is a snakecurled up around the seedling. It is delicate. Fill with moresoil, if necessary, and tamp. Tamping is important. If soil isnot firmly packed around the roots, there will be air pocketsthat can dry out the roots, and the seedlings may be weaklyanchored. It is far easier to plant the tree strait up then havethe tree leaning and have to staiten the tree later. (Additionof fertilizer and plant vitamins at the time of planting is notgenerally necessary.) Take your time in planting. Proper spacingwill help you grow a more valuable crop. I have tried to getmore production from a limited area by over planting and thenthinning, but I always have had trouble in harvesting ....digging is slower and poor quality usually results for a portionof the crop. Avoid these tree planting errors: Tangled roots Planting too shallow Planting too deep Air pocketsTurned up roots (this is called J rooting) Planting trees thatare not tolerant of wet soils in poorly drained areas Plantingover rocks, septic tanks and leach fields, on sand mounds CARE OF TREES FOLLOWING PLANTING Check periodically to be surethat brush, grass and other vegetation is kept under control bymowing, mulching, spraying or a combination of these treatments.Always obtain advice from a licensed pest control advisor beforeusing chemicals. You ag extension agency may offer courses inapplication of chemicals. Monitoring the appearance of yourtrees will help you to detect signs of insects, diseases orother problems. Apperances also help sell your product. Look forfoliage turning yellow, new foliage drooping or other signs ofpoor health. It is easier to take successful corrective actionif the problem is detected early. Over watering is a common problem in irrigated plantations. Youprobably won't need to water more frequently than every 7-10days. Give your trees a thorough, deep soak and then let thesoil dry out before the next watering. This encourages the rootsto grow down in search of water. Frequent, shallow wateringencourages root growth near the surface and the trees are moredependent on irrigation and are less windfirm. Read about watersaving ideas for gardeners Animals can be a major cause of damage to young trees.Porcupines, gophers, mice, rabbits, deer and cattle are the mostfrequent source of damage. In many states you may have to callyour game commission and get their recomendations on legalmethods to protect your crop. In our state, you can get helpfrom the Pa. Game Commission to kill deer that are a threat toyour seedlings or obtain a free fence to keep deer away fromyour seedlings. Over the years we have lost more trees to micethan any other animal. Put rat baits out on a regular basis.Other articles that you will find of interest: http://seedlingsrus.com/DeerDamageControlhttp://seedlingsrus.com/NewConstructionhttp://seedlingsrus.com/Soilshttp://seedlingsrus.com/PlantingTips.htmlhttp://www.zone5trees.com/GrowingGrasses.html About the author:Bill has been raising and planting spruce seedling for 30 yearsat his Doylestown Pa. farm.
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