Please view our guide How to plant a Barcham Tree to see the process that we recommend you follow to achieve great results with your tree planting.
The following are further tips to give your trees the best start:
Treat your Trees with care
- Handle trees gently on site—avoid dropping, tossing, or dragging them to prevent damage before planting.
- Store trees out of drying winds and under shade to protect against freezing or overheating
Give your trees the best start..
- Plant trees when the soil is moist and frost-free. The ideal planting season is November to March, but our container-grown trees can be planted year-round.
- Cultivated soils will generally provide a better medium for root development and plant growth.
- Dig a hole no deeper than the tree’s container. A deeper hole is only necessary if your site has poor drainage. For those with poor drainage, please contact us for additional advice on planting.
- The width of the planting pit should be a minimum of one and a half times as large as the root-ball/container and up to a maximum of two times as wide, if the soil is very compacted. This means that a root-ball of 40cm wide should be planted in a hole at least 60cm wide.
Keep the Area Weed-Free
- Weeds compete for water and nutrients in the rooting zone of young plants, restricting their growth.
- Tall weeds, especially bracken, can collapse and smother young trees.
- If you use weedkillers, take care to shield the tree from spray drift.
- Maintain a 1 metre diameter weed-free spot around the tree. We recommend using bark mulch to help with this in soft landscape situations.
Watering is key…
- Good planting is the first step—consistent watering is just as important.
- Begin regular watering early in the year when the weather becomes drier and the tree starts to come into leaf. Continue until leaf fall in the autumn.
- There’s no one-size-fits-all amount. The site and weather will determine how much water your tree needs. Monitor conditions and use common sense.
- In summer, water newly planted trees 2–3 times per week, using at least one full watering can per tree each time.
- Use a watering can with a rose attachment to apply water gently from the top of the planting pit. This helps it soak in gradually and encourages healthy root development.
For our full advice and recommendations on watering, please view our guide How much to water newly planted trees.
