Planting trees and bushes in November?
-
So we have been thinking about having some trees planted on our property, I think we posted about it back in May maybe? Probably arbor vitae and maybe some boxwoods in our front flowerbed.
Anyway we’re going to use a nursery/landscaping company. We have a bunch of stuff going on in October so I was worried about planting in October and needing to water daily. They said we could have them do the planting in the first week of November and that would mean less watering right off the bat… it won’t be that cold here (most likely, although famous last words) but should we be worried that that’s too late in the year?
Any other advice about what to ask, things to focus on would be appreciated!
-
I wouldn't think you'd need to do a whole lot of watering in October either - you're in the midwest, not the south and things should be turning toward chilly and rainy by mid October. But I think early November would also be fine - the plants will basically go dormant quickly after planting and then come back in the spring. Many years ago, I found an awesome end of year clearance deal at Lowes on my favorite lilacs (Bloomerang). It was definitely into November (might have even been early December) and they were 90% off and then like half off of that again, meaning the $50 pots were somewhere around $2. I bought every single one they had (something like 14 plants), took them home, and planted them immediately -- I figured they were so cheap that if they didn't make it, so what. They all came back in spring, though I think one died by the end of that summer. Even with having to replace that one plant at full price, it was some of the best money I ever spent on landscaping. And if you are using a landscaping company, I would just ask them to guarantee that if any of them don't come back in spring, they'll replace them for you for free. Usually a year after planting is a pretty standard guarantee for a landscaping company and if they won't offer it, I'd find another company.
-
As long as soil temperatures are in the 50s or even the 40s, you should be okay.
While they won't need a lot of watering because temps won't be baking the soil, you still need to be sure that the soil has a bit of moisture so the roots can develop. And any evergreens, like the boxwoods, really don't go completely dormant and need to have a bit (not too much) moisture going into winter. That second part is true for both newly planted and established plants.
And I agree with whoever said that the landscaper should provide a one year growing guarantee. That way if anything doesn't make it through the winter, they will have to replace them.
-
Thanks @Lisa and @wtg for these comments!
Yep, we're going with a highly recommended company and they do have a guarantee, although I'll double-check to make sure that it's a full one-year.Yeah, Oct. will be crazy and Mr Sk will be away for some of it so that's why I want to avoid Oct.
Re soil temps, I have a hard time believing we'll get below 40 in the first week of Nov...
I'll report back. We still have to decide on a lot of details (exactly what, where)...
