Want to Plant Trees?

When you were a kid did you ever eat an apple and saved seeds, later planting them in a jar or your yard? Did you ever get much further than a sprout? Do you ever look at the seeds now and wonder what would happen now as an adult and thought about trying again? Why not, you have a much longer attention span, you don’t necessarily have more knowledge about growing trees but you do have more resources to figure it out? Am I telling you that I can walk you through growing a tree from a seed? No. I don’t know how to do that, but I can give you a couple tips.

Maybe don’t start from a seed: Again, I don’t know how to help you with that. Growing a tree is a strangely delicate process. It needs to be in the right climate (people don’t usually grow apples in Georgia), the soil needs to be right (Georgia clay is not very hospitable), The roots need the proper room to grow, etc. and so forth there’s a lot to think about. Thus, starting from a seed would be even more tenuous. However, if you buy a sapling you have a higher margin for success.  If you go to a local plant nursery they likely are only selling trees that are capable of surviving in your climate. Besides, at least there would knowledgeable or semi-knowledgeable people in there you could ask.

Look at Plant Parameters: Is the type of tree your looking at sun loving? Do they need shade? Will your yard support them? For some reason, people forget that trees… are big. I know that sounds weird to say out loud but you get a sapling around four feet tall and when you’ve stopped paying attention it’s reached fifteen feet and it’s still not done growing. While we’re talking about things that grow let’s talk about the roots. Think of a tree like a glacier, big and mighty above ground, bigger and mightier and more destructive below. Tree roots can damage the foundation of your house. Think about keeping your tree around fifteen ft. out from anything solid like your house, your mailbox, the sidewalk, your fence, you know anything solid. Fifteen ft. is not the rule for every tree, you’ll need to check the spacing requirement for that species. Again, maybe go to a nursery where you’ll be able to get that kind of information with the tree or from a worker. Trees are also fragile in the beginning. When you first plant a tree, it’ll need a lot of attention. You’ll have to water it frequently. You’re going to need to at least look up the maintenance for your specific species of tree.

So, there you go! Go plant a seed or something. I can’t make any promises about the outcome but at least now you have a better idea about the type of commitment a tree is and what you’ll need before you start. Now go do some gardening!