Help! Maybe I’m over-reacting, not sure, new to fruit growing.
I just got an email saying my $600 order is arriving - tomorrow! I’ve still got a foot or more snow on most areas of my village lot where I’m planting these (this is the year I’m really getting the whole show going!), and all ground is frozen save for maybe some small fringe of a few inches adjacent to house.
Spring’s about on time here in the UP, 5a/Dfb - even considering last weekend’s 1-2’ snowstorm & tonight’s predicted ice storm. If nothing else comes & things are normal it’ll still be at very least 2 weeks before I can dig, maybe more.
I’ve got 3 plums, 2 pears, 3 Amelanchier, 1 apple, 5 haskap, 1 grape, 6 Ribes, 1 blueberry, 2 aronia, 2 Nanking cheery, & an elderberry on the way (plus a bit more from other nurseries I think might wait a bit longer)! All bare root, I think.
I was sort of thinking this very established nursery would know it’s still winter here most years & ship closer to their later indicated date in 1st week May rather than their earliest - this isn’t exactly Dixie! (or maybe they assumed I’d know it’s no big deal calm down!?)
Anyway, I can’t possibly dig or plant – or even heel in for weeks - and the only storage area I have is my unheated garage (I don’t have a ‘cool porch or basement’). It’s likely that low temperatures can be 10-20f off & on with days 30-45, and while I wait for the snow to melt and ground to thaw it could possibly get above 50f in the garage.
Possibly - if I shovel the foot or so of snow off my vegetable garden area tomorrow - I could heel in in maybe 5-7 days when it thaws if weather cooperates. Looks like next week forecast is ~15-30 nights & 30-50 days.
Anyway, I hope everybody will tell me I’m over-reacting!
I can check the roots, add moist sawdust, store in garage (or outside in snow in shaded N-facing area?), but the roots will still get below freezing off & on.
So asking advice on best way to prepare & store these for the next 2-3 weeks until I can dig & plant, which ones are most sensitive, etc. They appear to have shipped today, so will have been maybe 24-48h above dormant temperatures.
I hope that I’m just a worried new fruit parent… I was sort of hoping to take days or so off work & do all the digging (not blasting or chiseling into frozen soil!) before the shipping was announced (Fedco, for example, sent me an email a week ago, saying the ship date for a much smaller order from them will be appx. May 1-5th: perfect - tho I wish they hadn’t run out of Mt. Royal plums after I ordered!).
Thanks in advance (I hope)!