January 19, 2020 - By Bob Labozetta (UC Master Gardener, Mariposa) - December through March is the time to plant fruit and nut trees. Bare root trees are less expensive, transport easily and acclimate best to native soils. Once you’ve chosen your variety of bare root tree, it’s time to plant. Choose a site that gets a minimum of six to eight hours of sunlight per day. To ensure deep, well-drained soil several feet wide around the planting site, loosen the soil deeply several feet around the site.
Do NOT add fertilizer or soil amendments directly to the planting hole. Prior to preparing the hole, work well-decomposed compost into the area. Dig a hole no deeper than the tree’s roots and about twice as wide as the root’s spread. Score the sides of this hole to allow more outward growth of the roots.
Form a cone of soil in the center of the hole and spread the roots over and around the cone orienting the tree so the bud union faces the southwest. This prevents sun-scald of the flat side of the trunk just above the bud union. Back-fill the hole halfway with the same soil that was excavated and gently tamp the soil to eliminate any large air pockets. The bud union should be four to six inches above the soil surface. Add some water to the hole. Finish filling the hole and firm gently again. The dirt around the tree should slope gently away from the trunk.
Unless you have a heavy clay soil, build a doughnut-shaped basin evenly around the tree slightly wider than the planting hole. Thoroughly water the tree to settle the soil around the roots and make sure the water drains away from the tree’s trunk.
Clear weeds and grasses from an area about three feet wide around the tree. Lay mulch three to six inches thick around the tree to prevent weed growth, conserve water, and keep soil temperature constant. Avoid crown rot by keeping the mulch several inches away from the tree’s trunk.
Finally, prune the tree back to a single trunk about 2 feet tall and paint the trunk with white interior latex paint diluted to two parts water to one-part paint. This whitewash will help prevent sunscald and bark peeling that leaves the tree susceptible to wood-boring insects that can damage or kill the new tree.
When growth begins in the spring, water the tree once or twice per week and adjust the schedule depending on the amount of rainfall or ambient temperature.
For more information on selecting fruit tree varieties, please go the Resources page on the Master Gardener website: cemariposa.ucanr.edu/Master_Gardener/Resources.
UC Master Gardeners of Mariposa County are located at 5009 Fairgrounds Rd., Mariposa.
The U.C. Master Gardener Helpline is staffed; Thursdays from 2:00 P.M. - 5:00 P.M.
Serving Mariposa County, including Greeley Hill, Coulterville and Lake Don Pedro
Please contact the helpline, or leave a message by phone at: (209) 966-7078
By email (send photos and questions for researched answers) to: mgmariposa@ucdavis.edu
For further gardening information and event announcements, please visit:
UCMG website: cemariposa.ucanr.edu/Master_Gardener
Follow us on Facebook at: Facebook.com/mariposamastergardeners
Master Gardener Office Location:
UC Cooperative Extension Office,
5009 Fairgrounds Road
Mariposa, CA 95338
Phone: (209) 966-2417
Email: mgmariposa@ucdavis.edu
Website: cemariposa.ucanr.edu/Master_Gardener
