Beginning in the late '60s, Carl Whitcomb, then professor of horticulture at Oklahoma State University, began a decade-long series of trials and studies involving hundreds of species of trees and shrubs. With the help of his students he grew, dug up, measured, replanted, and remeasured thousands of specimens, measuring root growth, trunk expansion, and shoot and leaf development. It involved a good deal of painstaking effort that ultimately paid off in some fascinating new knowledge about trees and shrubs and, in particular, their roots.
âtrees and shrubs grow most of their new roots - better than 80 percent, in fact - in the fall of the yearâ
Whitcombâs book is on a shelf about 3 feet from the fingers typing this sentence- I still sometimes refer to it. It is not a typical textbook and is written in a way to be understood by working people and not just college students.
âEstablishment and Maintenance of Landscape Plantsâ, Lacebark Publications.
When I was starting my business I spoke to the man a couple of times and am still using his bag design in my nursery.
agreed! also the best time to root cuttings in ground. most that wont root in pots in the spring, will root in the fall until the ground freezes or if it doesnt freeze, will set roots all winter.
Ok we solved when to plant trees. I am confident in stating that Autumn is THE best time to plant trees.
Onward⌠i think i have found the answer for adding leavesâŚwith this very extensive studyâŚ
Peach Orchard-
âTransplanted trees were mulched with a 6-inch layer of shade tree leaves and compared with bare-ground culture. After the first growing season, the trunk cross-sectional area was 10% greater than where trees were not mulched. By the end of the second growing season, the trunk cross-sectional area was 13% greater for the mulched trees. Adding supplemental N fertilizer further increased tree growth over mulch alone. Soil under mulched trees had better moisture retention compared with trees with bare ground. Although yield was not measured, trunk and tree size are generally associated with increases in peach yield.â
âBecause collected shade tree leaves have a C-to-N ratio of 50:1, they have the potential to cause N deficiency in crops in the first year after application.â
I think we would all love to read it. Perhaps it will be posted in the Reference section? I didnt mean to steal your thunder with Dr. Whitcombâs decades of studies.
I had heard by word of mouth for years about Fall planting and also Spring planting⌠it took this thread to find out for sure (for me)âŚ
I have also read many articles of leaves and the pros/cons and the N issues or in some cases no mention of N. The last reference i posted is what i have been looking for but never stumbled across it.
I look forward to reading your article⌠if you may share with us.
I do not live in your state nor know which local paper to read it in⌠so for now i will remain excited.
Years ago I read of a Cornell study of using woodchip mulch as a weed suppressing strategy in a semitstandard (M7) apple orchard. I donât remember the details, even the depth of the mulch although I think it was 3-4" thick in the row middles. By about the 8th year the trees became overstimulated and the exuberant growth damaged fruit color- they also required more pruning work. Some of the blame was put on the N fixing bacteria that came to populate the humous and woodchip layer. So you canât really judge mulch simply by a year or two experiment. In the northeast, mulch can be a problem for mature trees if growth is overstimulated, which can certainly happen in at least some soils. The trees I manage I often let the mowed sod reach the trunks once the trees are mature enough to bare heavy crops- especially with apple trees.
Of course, commercial orchards usually use herbicide strips which at least doesnât enrich the soil or increase its water holding capacity the way repeated mulching does. But I donât use herbicides.
Trees are planted in the spring because thatâs when they are sold to the masses. When the birds are singing and the sun is shinning new them plants sell themselves and the nurseries bank on that. By now there is not even a point on trying so they donât sell them, and thus people donât plant them now.
Let me put it this way; here in Alaska if you are not planting it in the fall, you should burry the pot so the roots are protected from the ambient temperatures. At that point you may as well plant the darn thing
same here. roots above ground are usually toast but ive saved bare root trees delivered by accident in mid winter by burying them still in the box under a snowbank till may.
âSoils amended with shade tree leaves held more moisture than unamended soils (after several years of mulching).â
This is from the link about community tree leaves and illustrates a point Iâve often made on this forum that never seems to sink in as far as influencing other comments. If reducing water can increase brix as research indicates, there is a point at which OM increase can lead to brix decrease in fruit in areas where it rains during the growing season. This has been an observation of mine for a couple of decades at least, based on what happens when I mulch trees annually for several years- at some point the buildup of rich humus can be a liability in the northeast to harvesting the highest quality fruit. However, during drought years, richer OM soil may improve fruit quality without irrigation.
Excellent point.
Still, younger trees, as is the case with a lot of the forum participants, may need tree SURVIVAL and tree growth more than they need to be concerned about maximum brix.
You reckon.
Whence my annual mulching of all my nursery trees. Unfortunately, many of my orchard trees have roots that extend into nursery soil, but my nursery trees bear my profits. Whoever ends up buying my property when Iâm dead or just too old to work will certainly be acquiring some of the best soil in my county- too rich for fruit.
I think soil moisture is also affected by grasses. Humans tend to mow, whereas nature seems to not mow. Animals forage and also trample grasses into the soil. I think that the best we can do as humans is to crimp or not mow at all and let those grasses fall and repeat the process⌠but it is very hard to do to leave it look unkept.
Root systems of grasses are also a factor. I think i read somewhere that uncut grass has much deeper roots which aerate and also contribute to moisture?
I think the myth is that grass and weeds steal from things we grow⌠but maybe they are needed?
Perhaps in nature the leaves fall from the trees onto the uncut grass which gives the leaves nitrogen to break down into matter that the next years grass needs to thrive even more?
Too much leaf mulch and nothing grows⌠light cannot penetrate.
Just the right amount of leaf mulchâŚand other things happen.
Its fairly proven that just fallen leaves allowed to decay provide enough to sustain life.
i highly recommend going on permies.com and reading Dr. Bryant Redhawks writings on there. he has a degree in soil physiology and dynamics of soil. Hes even written some books. very thorough and informative but a rather long read best done in blocks, but worth it.
Bacteria is just one of the denizens of a healthy soil, it is truly a micro and macroscopic jungle down there. The more life thrives the more the energy exchanges that makes plants happy will take place.
If you want to see what bad bacteria looks like take a 5-gallon bucket, fill it up with your favorite soil, and drench it in water. After a few weeks dump the dirt out.It will smell like a cow farm and the texture will be boggy and possibly even slimy, the result of anaerobic bacteria taking over and most everything else that is good for your fruit plants dying out.
And yet some trees downright thrive in that stuff. Around ponds here you can see healthy birch trees growing right up to the water line.
Hereâs a happy birch next to an old pond. Judging by the maps of the area its roots have been on that spot next to the water since it was a baby.
There are other spots in the forest where birches may be outcompeted by other trees that may grow faster, taller, have more aggressive propagation mechanisms, or simply wake up earlier in the spring. On this spot the birch just laughs at the competition.
I love birches but they seem to be inherently weak. We had a white birch that was gorgeous but woke up one day and the whole thing was on the ground.
When we first moved in I had an arborist come out and walk the yard with me. As to my lovely white birch and mimosa treeâyou need to replace them. They are short lived trees. Sad but true.
On the other hand she loved the gingko, tulip poplars, and dawn redwood.
Me I donât often listen to advice. I planted a grouping of river birches and Iâm still looking for a nice white birch.
