Do you know… one large, mature tree can can produce about 270-liters of oxygen a day? That's just nearly half of what the average human needs in a day. Our earth needs trees!
Every year I plant as many trees as possible here at my farm - it's one way I can give back to the environment and help create a cleaner, healthier and more sustainable planet for my grandchildren and for everyone. As you saw in yesterday's post, I recently received the season's first shipment of bare-root tree cuttings. Bare-roots are dug from the ground while dormant and stored without any soil surrounding their roots. And now they will thrive in nutrient-filled composted soil until they can be transplanted in the ground. Earth Day is coming up on April 22nd. I hope you plant a tree or two to celebrate.
Enjoy these photos and short video showing all 700 newly potted bare-roots!
Since I plant so many trees I get some that are older and taller for various, more developed gardens and hundreds in the form of bare-root cuttings for hedges or larger group plantings for new allées, groves and in the woodland.
Among them, lots of boxwood cuttings. This is ‘Winter Beauty’ Boxwood. It grows three to four feet in height and spread. It’s great for low hedges and borders. This variety has small dark green leaves, spring through fall and then bronze leaves in winter.
One of my favorite varieties is Buxus ‘Green Mountain’. It is a vigorous evergreen shrub with bright green foliage that retains good color throughout winter. The upright, naturally cone-shaped habit makes it an excellent candidate for planting free-form or for a sculpted hedge.
Boxwood is popular for its versatility in the garden, its foliage, and its year-round greenery. Buxus is a genus of about 70 species in the family Buxaceae. Common names include box or boxwood. The boxes are native to western and southern Europe, southwest, southern and eastern Asia, Africa, Madagascar, northernmost South America, Central America, Mexico, and the Caribbean.
This section is for Austrian Pine, Pinus nigra. Also known as European black pine, this tree is a medium to large conifer that is native from central and southeastern Europe to western Asia. It grows 40 to 60 feet tall.
It features stiff green needles that are three to six inches long.
These Grand Firs are only inches tall now, but in an undisturbed forest, these trees can grow up to 250 feet tall.
When mature, the Grand Fir has a conical shape, spreading out to 25 feet. Healthy needles grow to about two inches in length and are shiny green on the upper surface, and silvery-white underneath.
These are young dawn redwoods, Metasequoia. I have many of these trees growing and thriving here at the farm. The dawn redwood has feathery, fine-textured needles that are opposite each other and approximately a half-inch long. Don’t confuse them with the bald cypress needles, which grow alternately. These dawn redwood needles will turn shades of red and brown before falling – it is one of the few deciduous conifers.
These pots are filled with Blue Rug Junipers – it is the lowest growing and among the slowest growing of junipers. It has a dense, trailing, creeping form, making it an excellent ground cover.
The plant itself has soft silver-blue evergreen foliage.
American Chestnut hybrids are a cross between Chinese Chestnuts and the native American Chestnuts. They are hardy and yes, the chestnuts are edible. If these are in good condition, they’ll have leaves by summer.
Cotoneaster horizontalis, also known as rock spray cotoneaster, is a great to use as a border shrub. It has small green leaves that turn bright orange and red in the fall, and bright red berries after flowering. And look at the branch – they grow in almost a herringbone pattern.
Cotoneaster horizontalis is a semi-evergreen deciduous shrub in the family Rosaceae genus, Cotoneaster.
I have always felt that bare root cuttings do best when potted up and nurtured for a period of time before being transplanted in their permanent locations. I keep these specimens in fenced in areas at the farm where they can be closely maintained.
These newest specimens will remain here for about a year or two until they are planted in the ground.
And this is why I keep all the plastic pots – so they can be recycled and repurposed for seedlings. I already have some ideas where these trees will go when they are ready!
I love trees and every year I plant thousands of them here at my farm.
Trees are extremely important to our environment - they are the world’s single largest source of breathable oxygen, they absorb carbon dioxide and potentially harmful gasses, and they create an ecosystem to provide needed habitat and food for birds and other animals. Earlier this week, I received a shipment of bare-root tree cuttings and small transplants from Musser Forests, Inc., a Pennsylvania-based company specializing in conifer and hardwood seedlings and transplants. Once the young specimens arrived, my crew hurried to pot them up, so their root systems can strengthen and develop before they're planted in more permanent locations.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
I have tens of thousands of trees here at my farm. The bigger and older trees are original to the property, but I have thoughtfully chosen, planted, and maintained thousands more since I moved here.
This is one of the most popular views – the tree-shaded carriage road leading to my woodland.
In the fall, the layering of tree colors is so beautiful.
Here is one side of my allée of pin oaks. These trees were just feet tall when I planted them.
Before planting around the farm, I nurture bare-root cuttings in pots. I’ve bought many from Musser Forests Inc. over the years and have always been very pleased with their specimens. Bare-root trees are so named because the plants are dug from the ground while dormant and stored without any soil surrounding their roots.
The plants are either shipped in bare-root bundles, or in smaller pots like these – always in great condition. The American chestnut is a large, fast-growing deciduous tree native to eastern North America.
Included in this shipment are 500 small potted boxwood – ‘Green Mountain’ and ‘Winter Beauty.’ Each specimen is removed from its pot and matched to a bigger one.
Bare-root plants should not have any mold or mildew. The cuttings should also feel heavy. If they feel light and dried out then the plant probably will not grow. Healthy bare-root trees get off to a more vigorous start because their abundant roots have already had a chance to develop unrestricted.
Each bare-root cutting is placed into an appropriately sized pot. The root section should fit into the pot without being crowded at the bottom.
Nearby, the potting mix is prepared. I use Miracle-Gro Potting mix along with some of my own compost made here at the farm. The soil mix is also amended with a good fertilizer.
Adan uses a shovel to mix the soil mix thoroughly.
The team works in an efficient production line process. As one fills pots, another plants.
Each pot is prepared with a small layer of soil ready for the tree and backfill. Phurba plants each specimen carefully, so it is straight and centered in the container.
Here, Alex holds the cutting with one hand and backfills the remaining space with the other.
Finally, the soil is tamped down lightly so there is good contact between the tree roots and the surrounding soil.
Here, Phurba carefully teases the roots of this boxwood cutting before potting it up in a new container. This stimulates new growth.
As each tree is potted, it is placed in a section with all like specimens.
This is Blue Rug Juniper, a consistently good trailing juniper with uniform, full centered growth and bold silver-blue evergreen foliage.
These are newly potted dawn redwoods, Metasequoia. Dawn redwoods grow faster than most trees. They have feathery, fine-textured needles that turn shades of red and brown before falling – it is one of the few deciduous conifers.
Among the tallest firs in the world is the Abies grandis, or Grand Fir tree. It is a large evergreen conifer with a narrow conical growth habit. Its spreading and drooping branches are filled with sharp tipped silver-green needles.
The trees will only remain in these pots temporarily – eventually, they will be transplanted in various locations around the farm. We save pots whenever we can – they always come in handy for projects like this, and I always encourage the crew to reuse supplies whenever possible.
Once a section of trees is potted up, Cesar loads them onto the back of our trusted Polaris off-road vehicle. Other trees and plants I got from Musser include Rockspray Cottoneaster and Austrian Pines.
Down in a fenced in area previously used as a flower cutting garden, weed cloth is placed where the pots will be kept, so everything is neat and tidy.
These evergreens will thrive in these pots for a year or two. They will also be closely monitored and regularly watered and fed during the time they are in containers.
By the end of the day, 700 bare-root cuttings and small transplants are potted and carefully arranged. April 22nd is Earth Day – I hope you’ll consider planting a tree to celebrate. This year, the theme is “Our Power, Our Planet” which focuses on the collective responsibility we all share in creating a sustainable future.
Mulching in spring prepares my gardens for the growing season and gives them all a finished look.
Mulch helps to prevent weeds and soil erosion, improve moisture retention, and provide insulation. Fortunately I am able to make my own mulch and compost. During the course of the year, my outdoor grounds crew amasses large amounts of organic debris - felled trees, branches, leaves, etc., but none of the material goes to waste. It is either repurposed quickly as milled lumber, or made into mulch and compost. Right now, my outdoor grounds crew is spreading a two to three inch layer of mulch in all the beds around the farm, at the base of various trees, under the blueberry bushes, and throughout my long azalea border.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
Once a year, I call in a tub grinder and crew to grind all the organic matter collected around the farm. It is done in a back field. All the material is put through the grinder not once, but twice.
What is created is this weed-free organic matter. And do you know the difference between mulch and compost? Mulch and compost are not the same. They are both used to help the soil, but they have different applications and benefits. Mulch is applied to the top layer of soil to help control weeds, retain moisture, and regulate temperature, whereas compost, which is broken down over time, provides essential nutrients and enriches the soil structure.
This mulch contains horse and chicken manure – all usable in the garden beds.
Each wheelbarrow is filled and then walked to a designated place in the garden. The crew works efficiently in a production line process. And do you see the steam? The steam is caused by the heat generated by the microorganisms breaking down the organic matter.
Here is Adan transporting a wheelbarrow of mulch to the newly expanded section of my pinetum. I just planted some new specimens here last week. It is still a work in progress, but it is looking wonderful so far.
Adan uses a hard rake to spread the mulch and break up any clumps.
Here is the area with its fresh layer of mulch.
The layer should only be about two to four inches thick. Anything less than two inches is too thin and won’t provide any weed prevention. However, more than four or five inches can keep water from getting to the soil.
Here, Pasang removes the thick layer of mulch that was used to cover the dahlias and repurposes it to mulch nearby beds.
One can see some of the dahlias peeking through the soil. This bed was so well protected during winter.
Here is Adan delivering another wheelbarrow full of mulch to the back of the pinetum.
He carries and drops them in between the plants. These smaller mounds make it easier to spread.
Mulch is also dropped in small amounts and then spread evenly under each tree.
But be careful not to use too much. Keep mulch two to three inches deep and away from the trunk to prevent moisture buildup and decay. Too thick a layer can also suffocate tree root systems.
Nearby my blueberry patch is already well dressed with a layer of mulch.
Here’s a look in between the bushes. Mulching can also create a microhabitat for beneficial insects, like earthworms, that improve the soil health.
Here, clumps of mulch are ready to be spread through the azalea border.
Chhiring rakes the mulch as evenly as possible. in addition, it is very important to spread mulch regularly and annually to maintain its effectiveness.
With organic mulch, heavy soils are better equipped to hold water and resist compaction – reducing erosion and runoff.
By adding good quality mulch, the soil maintains nutrients as it decomposes which helps plants grow stronger and healthier through the year. Don’t forget to mulch your spring gardens.
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