Midori Nicole Evans

English 202C

PLANTING A TREE
Balled and Burlapped

Background Information
Trees have been around since the beginning of time and throughout centuries have evolved and changed the way people view them. Trees are becoming a huge part of everyday life. Many people are seeing the effect plants have on them as human beings. Besides providing oxygen, trees can change the mood of a person and the way they see the landscape. Many people believe that they know how to plant a tree. They may say, Whats so hard about it? Just put it in the ground. But what they do not know is that for the tree to be healthy and grow strong, trees must be planted the correct way. Trees are very much like people, if you put the right stuff in them, you will yield a thriving product. Planting a tree is simple, but it can take some practice. This process takes about an hour to two hours depending on experience and dedication. Follow the steps on planting a tree and you will want to plant trees all over your property.

Tips to Using This Instruction Set

An orange triangle represent troubleshooting tips. Please pay attention to these tips to help you understand why a step is being performed. A red triangle represents safety information. Please follow these tips to avoid any bodily harm or harm to your tree. Any information in yellow, is additional information Use the footnotes for word definitions Before performing this task please read the safety tips

Safety Tips
NEVER plant a tree by yourself! Always solicit the help of others to avoid any bodily injury NEVER run with scissors, Handle with great care. ALWAYS wear protective clothing to avoid injury. Please wear long pants, steel toe boots, and safety gloves ALWAYS have a water source. If working in the sun, keep you and your tree hydrated ALWAYS inspect the tree before purchasing, to avoid bringing any pests or diseases into your landscape ALWAYS make sure you inspect the area where youre planting the tree to make sure there are no possible power lines or underground utilities. The tree could possibly grow into water and electrical utilities. Contact PA- 1-CALL to inspect the area.

PA-1-CALL: To promote safety and prevent damage to underground facilities.

Materials
3 to 4 people Spade shovel Shovel Gloves Wire cutters Scissors Tree staking set (can be bought at any Garden store) Mulch Hose Blue tarp Pruners

Step One: Preparing the Site

As show in Figure 1, remove anyexisting grass, if any with a shovel, where you are placing the tree.

Figure 1

Scalping the existing grass

DIYNetwork

Step Two: Preparing the Site

Dig a hole that is wider than the ball of the tree and the same height of the ball of the tree. You can check depth and height with the shovels as shown in the the picture. When the hole is done the bottom of the hole should be mounded You can place the tree into the hole to measure, but be sure to pick the tree up from the base of the root flare to avoid any damage to the tree.

Spade shovel: Pointed tip head. Used for digging and removing the soil. Shovel: flat head. Used for lifting and moving soil to another location. Root Flare: the point on the tree at which the tree trunk meets the roots. Base of the tree. Root Ball: main mass of roots at the base of the tree, encased in burlap.

Step Three: Preparing the Site

The first inches of soil (dark in color) should be placed on the blue tarp for back fill. This is very important because you want a mix of soils for the tree to adjust to the new home. Any left-over dirt is discarded or taken to another site for compost

Step Four: Planting the Tree

Place the tree in the hole. The tree should be standing in an upright position on its own. If not take some soil and push under the root ball to level the tree. The twine and burlap should still be tightly tied to the root ball. If removed the root ball will be disrupted and roots will be exposed. Also it could be quite harder to plant the tree.

Step Five: Removing the Basket

Using the wire cutters, cut as much as possible of the wire basket off of the tree. The wire cannot be left on the tree because it can stunt the growth of the tree or possibly lead to death.

Step Six: Planting the Tree

After the tree is upright, back fill a little of the soil into the hole about less than half way up to the burlap.

Step Seven: Planting the Tree

Using your feet or the shovel lightly tamp the soil Try not to apply too much pressure because you dont want to compact the soil and crush the root ball.

Step Eight: Planting the Tree

Using the scissors, cut the twine away from the root flare and pull back the burlap. Cut the burlap up to the tamped soil. The burlap cannot be left on the tree because it inhibits the tree from receiving water

Back Fill: using the sites soil to refill the hole. Acclimates the tree to the site. Tamp: lightly applying pressure to compact the soil. Roots and soil comes in contact

Step Nine: Planting the Tree

Continue to add soil and tamp in between adding the soil in order to secure the tree in an upright position. The soil should cover at least half an inch of the tree flare. If the tree leans over while doing this, stop adding soil and pull the tree back to its upright position. Do not pull the tree by the upper trunk. This results in damaging the tree or possibly breaking the tree in half.

Step Ten: Tamping the Tree

Once all the backfill is added tamp the soil once again to make sure the tree is secure

Step Eleven: Pruning

Prune any broken branches or twigs that are out of place. Do not prune more than 25% of the tree crown. Prune any twigs that are crossing each other or broken twigs.

Back Fill: using the sites soil to refill the hole. Acclimates the tree to the site. Tamp: lightly applying pressure to compact the soil. Roots and soil comes in contact

Step Twelve: Watering

Dont turn on the water too high. Now place the hose at the base of the tree flare and water the tree. Water until the upper 18-24 inches of soil are saturated. You should water until the water starts to runoff. If water runs off, stop watering and allow the water to saturate into the soil. Make sure you water deep and infrequently. Meaning water for long intervals, but less frequently. This allows for the soil to be fully saturated. Water every ten days to four weeks following the process previously described. Make sure you check the wetness of the soil every ten days to avoid the soil from drying out.

Step Thirteen: Mulching

You should apply no more than 3 inches of mulch around the base of the tree. You should clear a ring from around the tree flare. Make sure that no mulch is actually touching the base of the tree. Do not build a mulch volcano. This can rot the base of the tree.

Troubleshooting and Additional Information

After the tree is planted and watered you can add small flowers around the base of the tree to add variety and color. Plant at least 24 inches away from the root flare.

Back Fill: using the sites soil to refill the hole. Acclimates the tree to the site. Tamp: lightly applying pressure to compact the soil. Roots and soil comes in contact

Cited Sources
Winters, Emily. Scalping Grass. 2012. DIYNetwork, Rochester, New York. DIYNetwork. Web. 12 Apr. 2014. <http://blog.diynetwork.com/maderemade/2012/07/26/emily-winters-the-big-patio-dig/>.

Back Fill: using the sites soil to refill the hole. Acclimates the tree to the site. Tamp: lightly applying pressure to compact the soil. Roots and soil comes in contact