Chapter 10: Start with Planting Trees—One of The Most Important Things We Can Do

What better place to start than with planting trees?! By now we know the incredible role that they play in Earth’s natural systems. They are the foundation for soil, water, sequestering carbon, and all terrestrial life.

But hang tight—we are not going to learn how to plant the typical trees that we would normally buy from a nursery, which are trees growing in containers (called containerized trees) and trees dug from fields (called balled and burlapped trees). These two will henceforth be referred to as traditional nursery trees. They are heavy, expensive, and difficult to properly plant.

Instead, we are going to learn how to plant saplings. They are cheap and very easy to plant—a tree of this size can be planted in three minutes or less. Better yet, they usually live longer, healthier lives as compared to traditional nursery trees.

First, What Is a Sapling?

Saplings are young trees, usually in the range of 1–3 years old, and are typically between 1–3 feet in height. We can grow them (more about this in Section 5 of this book), dig them up, or purchase them. If the latter, saplings are typically sold as bare root, which means they do not have any soil around their roots and are not potted in containers. The best place to buy them is a local native nursery if that option exists. If not, they ship easily, which means we can order them from online stores and a variety of other organizations like Arbor Day Foundation and our state forest service. Especially with native plant nurseries being far less common than traditional nurseries, this greatly expands our ability to access native trees and shrubs. This is the beginning—let’s explore all the other reasons why saplings are better than traditional nursery trees.

Saplings Are Easy to Plant

We can plant 20 or more saplings in an hour, which is about the same time it takes to plant one traditional nursery tree, pending the exact size. The work itself is easy because we are using small plants that require tiny holes. The planting process requires almost no technical expertise. So long as the trunk and roots are in approximately the right place, the plant will adapt. It is very hard to improperly plant a sapling.

Planting traditional nursery trees, on the other hand, is hard work. They are heavy and challenging to transport. The labor required to dig the holes is physically demanding. The planting itself leaves little room for error; we must meet a high technical standard. As a result, the majority of all traditional nursery trees planted in the sub/urban landscape have been installed improperly, which leads to sickly trees dying premature deaths. A USDA study analyzing tree life expectancy in sub/urban areas found that the typical street tree lifespan is 19–28 years, far shorter than what it should be. An oak in the wild can live over 1,000 years. They are not even considered to be mature until they reach 300 years of age.

Saplings Establish Quickly with Little Help

Saplings generally need little to no time to establish, which can be defined as the point when growth returns to pre-transplant levels. Saplings usually establish during the first growing season and generally need little to no supplemental watering.

Pending the size of the tree, how it was planted, site conditions, growing zone, maintenance practices, and whether the tree is watered or not, it can take years for a traditional nursery tree to establish. In perfect conditions with regular watering, it will generally take a tree with a trunk diameter size of 2 inches one to two years to establish. Because conditions are rarely perfect, a tree of this size will typically take two to four years to establish. Bigger trees will take longer.

Watering requirements for traditional nursery trees will depend a lot on when, where, and how the trees were planted. Regardless of the details, the amount of watering required for these larger trees will always be substantially more than for saplings. Bigger plants need more water than smaller ones.

The net result is that while a traditional nursery tree may look bigger on the day it is installed, it is likely to be outpaced by a younger sapling over the five-to-10-years time horizon. Although it seems counterintuitive, by planting a sapling we will actually have a larger tree faster. We will also save time and effort on watering.

Saplings Are Cheap

Saplings usually cost $3 to $7 per plant if we buy them (or free if we collect them outside). In contrast, most standard traditional nursery trees cost $40 to $90 each, with prized species like Japanese maples costing $200 to $300. Larger trees cost far more.

After purchase, we need to transport these trees. For saplings that is easy. But for traditional nursery trees, we either need a spacious vehicle, pickup truck, trailer, or will have to hire somebody to help. This adds effort and expense.

Saplings Have a Smaller Carbon Footprint

Carbon footprint is the term used to describe all the fossil fuel required for a given activity. In the case of growing a tree, this includes energy for powering machinery, irrigation, fertilizer production, staff driving to/from work, transportation of supplies to and from the nursery, and so much more. It adds up quickly for a nursery operation (this is true for most businesses, Leaf & Limb included). The fact that it only takes one or two years to grow a sapling compared to three to five years for an average traditional nursery tree reduces the carbon footprint substantially.

Most Important: Saplings Have Ideal Root Structure

The health and structure of a tree’s root system plays a key role in its longevity and health. A healthy root system is one that radiates straight out from the base of the trunk and extends to well beyond the edge of the canopy. It is full of small feeder roots, which help keep the tree healthy, and various types of large structural roots, which help keep the tree stable. Here are some examples of what these root systems look like:

Examples of tree root structure A look at healthy tree root structure.

Saplings typically have ideal root systems. Even when they are less-than-ideal, they are generally young enough to be able to overcome early defects. It’s a different story for traditional nursery trees. Let’s look at both types in more detail:

Balled and burlapped trees are grown in a field. When the time comes for the tree to be sold, an operator uses a large machine to dig it out of the ground. This spade cuts away the majority of the tree’s root system, leaving only the 2–3 feet of roots immediately surrounding the trunk. This is a small fraction of the tree’s full root system. The tree will spend years repairing this damage. It may or may not succeed over the coming decades.

Containerized trees are grown in pots. As they develop, roots grow in circles around the inside of the pot. Well-developed tree roots should not form circles; this leads to critical root defects at a young age. Not only that, but due to traditional growing practices, the nurseries often bury what is known as the root collar. The root collar is the base of the trunk where it flares out and becomes the root system. When it is buried, roots will grow around the trunk and strangle it. These strangling roots harm the tree’s health and often lead to premature death. These issues must be corrected before planting, which means cutting away root mass. It is normal to remove anywhere from 10% to 50% of the roots of a typical containerized plant. As with the balled and burlapped trees, it takes time to overcome this loss. Even with the best pruning, there is no way to fully undo the damage of growing in a container, which often leads to health and structural issues that plague the tree for its whole life.

What’s the Catch? Pushback Against Small Trees

Why do most individuals and organizations opt to plant traditional nursery trees instead of saplings? Part of this is simply due to a lack of knowledge. Another part is convenience—it’s easy to drive to a local nursery and buy a plant. Based on my experience, however, the primary reason is the desire for the instant gratification of a larger tree, regardless of the long-term implications.

That said, there is one downside to saplings that will require attention: saplings are more fragile than larger trees. We must keep them safe from lawnmowers, string trimmers, and passersby. It is a lot easier to accidentally mow down a young sapling as compared to a tree with a 2-inch diameter trunk.

Luckily this issue of fragility is easy to solve—far easier than the various problems generated by traditional nursery trees. We can protect these saplings in a variety of ways, including with tree guards, various cages, and fencing. I will explain how later in this chapter.

How to Plant Saplings

Next let’s learn the process for planting saplings!

Step 1: Assess the Growing Site Conditions

Before we begin, we must first choose the right species for the given location. Otherwise, the tree may be doomed. Consider a tree growing underneath powerlines. It needs to be a species with a short maximum height or else the utility company will remove it (or severely prune it). Here are some questions we should consider. But first, a video tutorial for those interested:

Here are the factors to evaluate before we begin:

1. What is our goal with this tree or shrub? For example, is our goal to provide food and shelter for birds? Provide shade? Or maybe our goal is functional (e.g., privacy screening, soaking up water in a low-lying area, or holding soil stable)? There are many possible goals. If the goal is simply to get more native trees in the ground, then great! Proceed to the next steps.
2. How much sun will this plant receive during the various seasons? To check sun conditions, you can either make observations or use a sun tracker app on your phone or tablet. I list some of my favorite apps in the Appendix.
3. What are the overhead space constraints? Are there limits to how tall or wide this tree or shrub should grow?
4. What are the soil constraints for the roots? Is there sufficient soil in which to grow?
5. What are the basic soil moisture conditions? We do not have to get technical. We mostly need to determine if the soil is extra dry, extra wet, or somewhere in between.

There could be other miscellaneous factors to consider, such as speed of growth desired, budget constraints, and so on—but there is no need to overthink any of this.

Step 2: Choose the Right Native Species Based on Site Conditions

Once we have determined our goals and site conditions, it is time to choose our favorite native tree and shrub species. Let’s quickly define some terms before we continue:

• Native plant: For the sake of this book, native is defined as the plants that offer the most benefits to the widest diversity of local life within the ecosystem in which they all co-evolved. This will generally be plants that grew within a given local ecosystem before the arrival of Europeans to that given local area. This definition works well for North, Central, and South America. It will not work as well in other areas, like Europe.
• Near-native plant: This means it is native to an adjacent or nearby ecosystem. Perhaps not as good to local life as a true native, these are still better than non-native options. Near-natives may represent a necessary compromise between fulfilling a certain need, such as being tolerant to growing conditions next to a street, while still attempting to provide some food and shelter for life that needs it.
• Non-native plant: This is a species introduced from another ecosystem that has not had enough time to co-evolve with local life in the ecosystem in which it now participates. Non-native plants provide less food, shelter, or other benefits as compared to native plants. Non-native plants are not necessarily invasive (more about this next), but they do represent an opportunity cost—that space could be occupied by something that benefits more local life. For example, Asian varieties of azaleas and camellias are quite popular across much of the Southeastern United States. They do not invade ecosystems, but they have little ecological value. They could be replaced with plants that provide more food and shelter to local life that needs it.
• Invasive plant: This is a non-native plant that outcompetes native plant species for valuable resources. These species harm ecosystems, leading to a decrease in the abundance and diversity of life—the very opposite of what we hope to achieve. Invasive species are not inherently bad. They are wonderful in their native ecosystems. It is our fault they were moved to this new ecosystem and caused destruction.

For those who have little-to-no experience picking native species, the easiest and fastest option is to contact a local or online native nursery and ask them for their favorite recommendations given the site conditions.

For those who would like to take a deeper dive, here are my general recommendations for how to choose the right native species:

• Start by finding local native plant societies and organizations. They often provide an abundance of resources and expertise available for free. Where I live, we are fortunate to have the North Carolina Native Plant Society.
• Reach out to local garden clubs. Some offer resources and ideas for native plants.
• There are many online plant databases and resources that provide information regarding local native plants. For example, NC State University offers a plant database called the “North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox.” I will list others in the Appendix.
• There are numerous social media groups, subreddits on Reddit, and Meetups that focus on native plants. Some are purely online and others offer an in-person learning component.
• Search for classes and resources related to native species at local arboretums, botanical gardens, and nurseries.
• Sign up for newsletters from the organizations that provide ongoing education about native plants. For example, each newsletter from North Carolina Wildlife Federation teaches readers about native and invasive plants and insects.
• Last but certainly not least, refer to books and publications. There are many great options available. I will list some in the Appendix.

Step 3: Time to Plant the Saplings!

By far the best time to plant trees and shrubs is during the dormant season. This will give them plenty of time to acclimate and begin growing some new roots. Those roots will help the saplings survive and thrive when the growing season returns. Plants installed during the dormant season generally have a higher rate of long-term survival and require little-to-no watering during the growing season.

If we have a mild dormant season with little snow, we can plant any time during this season. For those of us in the Southeast, we have a wide planting window that typically runs from November through February. If our area receives lots of snow and has deep frosts due to very cold weather, I recommend planting late in the dormant season, as soil temperatures unthaw and begin to approach 40°F on average.

This does not mean we cannot plant during the growing season; we can. But we either have to water frequently or accept increased tree mortality.

Now it’s time to plant the saplings! Our overall goal is to ensure the sapling’s roots are in the ground, pointing down, and the trunk is above ground. Here is the video tutorial showing the basic process for planting saplings:

1. There are many tools we can use to dig, including a hand trowel, a Hori Hori knife, a flat shovel, or a normal shovel. My favorite option is a shovel with a square, straight blade that is often called a nursery spade or garden spade. I also recommend a tool called a dibble bar as a possible option for those planting lots of saplings.
2. Using our tool of choice, the next step is to create a wedge in the soil big enough to insert the sapling’s roots. We do so by driving the tool into the ground and pushing it as deep as it will go. Then we push it forward to create a wedge in the ground. Sometimes we may need to repeat this process several times to widen or deepen the wedge. However we do it, the goal is to make sure the wedge is deep enough to hold the roots.
3. Then we place the sapling’s roots in the wedge. Make sure all the roots are in the soil. We must also do our best to ensure the roots are all pointing down. If the tips of the roots are not pointing down, and instead bend to the side or up toward the sky, we call these J-hooks. We need to avoid creating J-hooks if possible.
4. Once the plant is in place, close the wedge and pack the soil around the sapling’s roots.
5. Add arborist wood chips (see page 118 in Chapter 14 for more information about arborist wood chips) around the new sapling. Aim for a depth of 1–3 inches.
6. Here are two other options to consider:
   • If we want to help inhibit weed growth, place some cardboard around the sapling under the arborist wood chips. Position it as close to the sapling as possible and extend it out to 1–3 feet from the trunk.
   • If we have leaf mold (partially rotted leaves) or leaf compost (fully rotted leaves), we can add those as well. We can place them in the hole, under the arborist wood chips, or both.

That’s it! We have now planted our sapling.

Care for Our New Tree

Saplings are very hardy and do not need much to thrive. Even when they wilt and appear to die, are accidentally cut down, or are eaten by deer, they often re-sprout. Here are some general care tips that we can follow:

Watering

With saplings, watering is generally not necessary. But perhaps we want to give our saplings some extra love or perhaps conditions are very dry and the saplings are struggling. In either case we can provide them with some water by using a hose to give each tree a 90-second splash every two to three days. If there are many saplings, we can set up a sprinkler or some sort of temporary irrigation of our choosing. Do not install permanent irrigation such as underground sprinkler systems. We want to stop watering as soon as possible so the trees can learn to survive on their own. This makes them more resilient and means we avoid wasting a precious resource.

We should water during the evening since it will remain in the soil for longer. If we water in the morning or afternoon, the water will evaporate quickly. Some say watering in the evening can create rot and fungal issues. This is of little concern for native saplings (and most plants, in my experience).

Arborist Wood Chips

Add fresh arborist wood chips each year. As the tree matures and grows larger, we should aim for a depth of 3–6 inches. This provides amazing health benefits for our tree. Avoid placing arborist wood chips on the root collar. Burying the root collar leads to strangling roots that damage the health of the tree and often lead to premature death. If possible, the arborist wood chips should extend out to the edge of the canopy, at a minimum. Further is better.

Tree Guards

We may need to install protection around each sapling (or group of saplings) to keep it safe from string trimmers, deer predation, rabbits, and so forth. There are all sorts of good options we can make or buy. My favorite go-to option is this:

Buy a roll of chicken wire (or sturdy equivalent) that is 4 feet wide. Cut out sections that are approximately 5 feet long. For each section, connect the ends to each other using scrap wire or a zip tie. Then place this hoop—which should have a 4-foot height with 1.5-foot opening—around the tree. Hold the hoop steady by placing sod stakes across the bottom of the hoop and pushing them into the ground. Please note that if you want a wider opening, you can increase the length of the chicken wire. The dimensions are flexible.

Here is the final, most crucial note: we must remove this hoop once the tree is large enough to survive on its own, which may take three to seven years. If we forget to remove this guard, it will kill the tree later. If there is any doubt about whether this tree guard will be removed in the future, we should either avoid using it or buy one that will pop off as the tree grows.

Structural Pruning

Structural pruning is essential to the long-term structural stability of the tree. I will cover this topic in depth in Chapter 12.

Planting Seeds Is Even Easier Than Saplings!

Another great option for growing native trees is to directly plant seeds in the ground where we want the trees to grow. This method mimics what happens naturally in the forest. Per usual, we’ll start with a video tutorial:

Here are the written instructions.

1. Choose a place to plant the seeds. If there is grass or other vegetation growing there, mow it down as low as possible.
2. Create a tree guard made of chicken wire and pin it in place.
3. Fill the bottom of the circle with 6 inches of arborist wood chips.
4. Scatter the seeds inside the circle.
5. Add a thick layer of leaves or leaf mold on top of the seeds.

Whatever grows will grow. Whatever outcompetes the other seeds will be the winner. Or we can select the winners by cutting competing saplings as we see fit. Best of all, we have the tree guard in place to keep the winning saplings from being damaged by mowing devices, deer, and other hazards. Remember to remove the hoop in three to seven years so it does not kill the tree later.

Whatever you decide to plant, don’t forget the best part: watching it grow! There is nothing I love more than watching little saplings mature into large trees humming with insect and bird life. It is absolutely amazing!