On 12/07/2012 04:26 PM, David Hill wrote:
On 07/12/2012 14:37, Baz wrote:
Emery Davis wrote in news:aie26qFdin8U1
@mid.individual.net:

Does anyone have an idea about how long I can go safely before planting
bare root trees? Normally I bung them in as right away, but the snow
and frozen ground are preventing me at the minute.

I expect it may depend somewhat on species, these are a pterocarya
fraxinifolia and a sycamore atropurpureum, both about 4m.

They were dug up yesterday (Thurs) morning at the nursery, I've put them
in a shed to keep the roots from freezing.

cheers,

-E

Surely bare rooted trees would store for at least 6 months, being so
freshly dug, if kept in moist soil or compost. Even at 4m. Its not as if
you expect a harvest from them, not like a fruit tree. A 4m sycamore is
going to need a big, deep stake to protect it from the very strong
winds we
can expect over the next 2 - 3 months. That would be my only worry.

Good luck, best wishes, Emery.
Baz

The thin king now is to stake it low, the more the trunk can move about
the thicker it will grow.

Feed him enough, he'll be the fat king...

True enough, I do stake low. Also only for 1 year typically. These are
tall but don't have much in the way of crowns, so shouldn't have a real
problem, although with the wind we get you never do know. I thought the
height might be important since that's a lot of distance to pump sap if
the roots are really weakened.

Baz, I guess I thought that the small roots would dry out pretty quick.
Cheers though, I'm reassured.

-E