Planting (and re-planting) Fruit Trees

We are still waiting on the water to subside, and we won’t know the extent of the damage for a while. I pulled several trees out of the ground to stop them from suffocating. The least I can do is give them a fighting chance.

So I thought I’d take this opportunity to talk about how we plant (and re-plant) the trees.

“High and tight,” is what every orchardist says about planting fruit trees. And it appears that is for good reason.

Commercial fruit trees are grown on a root stock. The root stock (bottom) determines the size and hardiness of the tree while the native tree (top) determines the fruit type and taste.

We followed their advice and planted the trees high. This means that the graft (where the root stock meets native tree) is high up out of the ground. If the graft touches dirt, then the native tree will sprout roots and take over. And we could end up with a 40’ tall brittle tree.

We also planted tight. We laid the lower roots down, packed them in tight, then layered more roots and packed... you get the gist. Because the tree is so high out of the ground, the roots below have to be snug, or it will fall over. Also, we didn’t stake and tie the trees yet, though we may need to in this crazy Kansas wind. The hope is that a little wind stress will make the roots grow stronger and deeper.

We followed all the advice, prayed really hard, and now it’s up to God and nature.