Tips on Planting Trees

Fall is such a great time to plant trees and shrubs. But keeping it alive takes attention all season. Mulching is very important for new trees but it's not as simple as dumping a bag of wood chips around it.

Here are some tips to help you avoid the most common mistakes:

• Don't pile mulch around the trunk. This keeps the trunk wet, which can allow diseases and insects to invade. Keep the mulch at least 6 inches from the trunk.
  
  
• Don't put on too little or too much. A 1-inch-deep layer doesn't do the job. A settled depth of 3 to 5 inches gives you the full benefits of mulch, including good weed control. Mulch depths of a foot or two are excessive and may smother roots.
  
  
• Don't apply sour-smelling mulch. If it smells icky it's probably been stored on a waterlogged site. The ammonia that builds in this situation can harm your tree. Sour mulch is a rare occurrence, but your nose will give you a clear warning of it.
  
  
• Don't use freshly chipped chips. While the chance of disease transmission is small it's easy to go zero-risk by aging chips for six weeks or more before using them around your trees.