Planting bare root Wax Myrtle Trees / Bushes

[brin]

I bought 50 bare root Wax Myrtle seedlings from our State and they will be delivered the end of the week...I am going to plant them along a fence as a privacy screen...they get 20 to 30 ft. high and 20ft. wide...so I am thinking of planting them about 10 ft. apart since they grow 4 to 5 ft. a year we will end up with a thick screen in a few short years....

Here is my question...if these are bare root seedlings....it shouldn't take a giant hole...? Should it..? I have watched pine seedlings planted on acreage and they just go along with a poking stick and poke a hole in the ground , insert the seedling and move on...Now I won't do that but my question is shouldn't it just take a shovel full ..just enough plant it to the level it was in the nursery..? Then on watering ...this is on our farm...I am not going to be able to water them once a week...so I was thinking just like the pine seedlings they plant on acreage in mass...no one comes and waters them...Have to depend on the rain....I am wondering if it is the same with these Wax Myrtles or if I should figure a way to tote water every week to the farm....I want them to make it ...but I don't want to waste a lot of effort if it is not needed...any thoughts.

 

[ncnurseryman]

Large hole: no, small hole: most likely depending on the size of the root ball. This time of year they will not require a lot of watering but how much is needed during the summer depends on your areas conditions and whether the plants became established. But a lot of nurseries around here plant in the field during the winter and do not have supplemental irrigation.

 

[RobertBrown]

I planted 40 of them a few years back. I ran an irrigation line to them for the first few months. I suggest you do the same, as the weather .......well it's just not predictable anymore.
Down here they are native and they grow like weeds. I did not dig any deeper than the root ball and all of them thrived very well.The stumps on some of them are 4" around now.
Without knowing your soil conditions it's hard to say...... I'm sure your soil is not like mine.
For me it was a wise choice as the plants are very resilient, being native. They survive everything but fire.

 

[brin]

Large hole: no, small hole: most likely depending on the size of the root ball. This time of year they will not require a lot of watering but how much is needed during the summer depends on your areas conditions and whether the plants became established. But a lot of nurseries around here plant in the field during the winter and do not have supplemental irrigation.

These are seedlings....bare root so there is no root ball, do you think I still have to dig a big hole or just plant them like they do planted pines when they moving through a field planting hundreds of them ??? Thanks so much for the advice.

I planted 40 of them a few years back. I ran an irrigation line to them for the first few months. I suggest you do the same, as the weather .......well it's just not predictable anymore.
Down here they are native and they grow like weeds. I did not dig any deeper than the root ball and all of them thrived very well.The stumps on some of them are 4" around now.
Without knowing your soil conditions it's hard to say...... I'm sure your soil is not like mine.
For me it was a wise choice as the plants are very resilient, being native. They survive everything but fire.

My soil is Ga. red clay and sand...these a bare root so no root ball...there is no way I can irrigate these...I will be at the mercy of the weather and just have to hope for some rain every 10 days or so....maybe I will get lucky...Georgia must be like Fla. with Wax Myrtles since they are native here as well and tough as nails...Did you know you can make candle wax from the leaves and soap as well....Google them and you will find the old timers did that. Thanks for the advice.

 

[ncnurseryman]

Just dig enough of a size hole to cover the root system and press the soil around them firmly. Be careful not to plant too deeply. You should be able to see where the soil line was prior to bring dug and do not plant deeper than that.

 

[CosmoAU]

The way I've planted bare root stock in the past is to take a spade and get it in the ground to desired depth. Then just rock it back and forth creating a crack in the soil. Insert plant and step on crack firming soil on roots. Doesn't take too long and has as good a survival rate as digging a hole. You rarely get a 100% survival if you're planting very many anyway.

 

[sixdogs]

I have planted 50 tree seedlings a year for many years and found the best way in a drier type climate is to plant the bare root tree in a cheap plastic pot in the spring and keep them close to the house for the summer where I can water them. Come August-September I carefully slit the pot off and plant where I want them. Doing this way I have had great success with good growth and virtually no losses.

 

[dex3361]

I have planted bare rooted trees and the way I go about it is to soak the bare roots for 6 or 8 hours prior to planting. Dig the hole big enough so the roots will fit as they were growing not bunched up. no deeper than they were growing before. I fill in with soil that I can work aroung the roots then water well and keep watered if they rains fail to come.