April is a great month for planting
Placement procrastination is an ailment I suffer from when it comes to planting. You know you have it if you purchased a bargain plant six months ago and it is still sitting in the pot. Good news wh?nau, April is a great month for planting in New Zealand, so make a placement choice and get digging!
April sees the turn of the seasons from hot to cool and any deciduous trees or shrubs you might be planting are ready to take a break with winter dormancy. There will be less stress and demand for water during the autumn months and they should have enough time to become established before winter. The exception to planting now would be if you live in a temperate zone where frosts can occur but you are wanting to grow a subtropical plant like avocado, this might best be left until after the last frost.
The risks involved with not planting your trees or shrubs include
- The chance they will become root bound.
- Stunted growth.
- A higher risk of dying from lack of watering and nutrition. Let the earth do all the work, so you don’t have to.
A bit of research can make all the difference
Do some initial research about the plant you are wanting to grow to check how much space it needs to grow and whether it needs full or partial sun or a shaded area. Also, check what types of soil it thrives best in or cannot tolerate. Now is the time to amend and enrich that soil to suit that plant, since hopefully, you will only do this once. It is common practice from where I come from to throw fish heads and guts into the hole before you do any planting, nowadays, since I moved into the country, I seem to bury more chickens under trees than fish.
Tips for planting a tree
Dig a hole a least twice as wide as the pot that your plant is in and as deep as the pot itself. To amend the soil first, dig down twice as deep to mix in compost and any other amendments.
Soak the hole but check that the water can drain into the surrounding soil (not just sit there) this will give those roots a good start. Lastly, soak the entire pot in a bucket of water until all the bubbles come out, then let it drain before planting.
You may not have to fertilize your tree at all, this depends on the nutritional condition of your soil. It’s important that roots establish themselves in the first two years. Once this happens then you’ll notice more growth above the ground. This is especially noticeable with fruit trees.
Pot-bound roots circle around the outside of the pot wall. The roots are looking for a way to escape and eventually become matted together. Loosen the roots with your fingers from the base of the root ball and try to tease them out. If they are too tangled, then you may need to use some secateurs to cut through and release the roots this way. If there is a noticeable central tap root, try and keep that intact as much as possible.
Place your plant in the ground checking that it is close to level with the surrounding soil. Firmly press the soil surrounding the plant into place and make the judgment about whether a stake is needed for extra support in holding the plant upright.
Mulch is always a good idea for new plants as this is a good way of locking in moisture and providing protection from the cold. Avoid layering wood chips and grass clippings that are still decomposing around trees, the heat produced from decomposition can damage the tree and invite disease. In a recent renovation my wife and I ripped out all the old wool carpet, this has become my choice of ground cover for new plantings.
As we move into spring your plants will thank you for a feed of liquid fertiliser as new growth starts to appear. Don’t worry if you don’t get everything into the ground in April, you can plant in May also, just be mindful you may need to use frost protection.
If you still can’t decide about where to put those plants then consider repotting to allow room for roots to grow.
