On May 10, 10:49*am, brooklyn1 wrote:
On Mon, 10 May 2010 08:36:48 -0400, cj wrote:
Phisherman wrote:
On Sun, 09 May 2010 14:01:30 -0400, cj wrote:

is it okay to keep them in the containers they come in for long periods
of time?. i bought one (6') last week and have yet to decide where to
plant it...i know to keep it watered.
thanks, cj

They should keep for many weeks or longer, best in cool conditions.
Sure, they will become established faster the sooner you plant them.
Soak them good immediately after planting, soak them again the
following day, then as needed (maybe weekly). * For now, don't
fertilize them. *

what type and how much fertilizer would you recommend? and speaking of
fertilizing can a lilac bush be fertilized?

A lilac bush requires no fertilizer... it's outdoors, Mother Nature
will tend to it.

Folks are becoming way too obsessed about fertilizer... perennials
planted in reasonably friable soil of a proper range pH need no
fertilizer, and in fact applying fertilizer does more harm than
good... applying fertilizer discourages plants from developing a
healthy root system... applying fertilizer discourages plants from
growing a deep, widespread, and strong root system. *Nobody fertilizes
the native plants in forests and meadows, they receive more than
sufficient nutrients from wildlife excrement and decaying plant
matter. *Potted plants need fertilizer but plants in the ground
absolutely do not... by applying fertilizer to perennials outdoors you
are forcing them to become potted plants. *When planting conifers
especially do NOT fertilize, or they will not send out feeder roots. *

Arborvitae is no weakling, it's a survivor, that's why it's so popular
at plant nurseries.... case in point, I have two American arborvitae
that I rescued from a vacant house in the village that was vacant and
for sale for a number of years, a realtor friend said take them...
there they were in their original five gallon nursery pots sitting on
concrete on either side of the paved walk leading to the front entry,
still had the nursery tags, I know they were sitting there for three
years because I passed at least once a week on my way to my PO Box...
they received no care whatsoever other than water when it rained, and
yet they looked perfectly healthy but weren't growing, they remained
about 3' tall for all that time... they survived frigid winter
temperatures in those pots of less than -20ºF (yes, that's a minus
sign). *They are now planted in the ground behind a fence near my
house (without the fence here they'd be deer fodder), only difference
is that they've more than tripled in size. *I never fertilized them
when I planted them or since.... just dug a hole, plopped them in, and
watered just that once. *I know that they are regularly fertilized
because nearly every time I look there's a bird perched atop and there
is always bird poop on the plants... in fact the one planted in my
front bed with the other foundation shrubs has a bird nest way deep
inside its branches... the other is planted on the other side of my
house to block my AC unit from view. *I've never fertilized any
perennial planted outdoors, I don't fertilze flowering annuals either
and they do fine... however I do fertilize my veggie garden, those
annuals do require additional nutrients during their short fruiting
season in order to increase yield, but still I fertilize very
minimally, some years all I do is add a top dressing of my compost.

These were taken Sept. 2008:http://i39.tinypic.com/4l3ba.jpghttp...com/j5xe7t.jpg

I have a couple of arborvitae that died back on one side because the
were butted up against a big shrub. I've trimmed back that shrub and
now the dead sides of the arb. are visible and look terrible. I
thought they'd come back quicker if I fertilize them. Should I not
bother? Thanks.