planting fruit trees – Xtremehorticulture

Soil Amendments and Backfilling Fruit Trees

Q. I’m planting new fruit trees this year. I’ve noticed there seems to be a consensus that backfilling should be done with only native soil, without any amendments. However, is there an exception in Las Vegas where the soil is exceptionally poor? Planting fruit trees in Las Vegas directly in amended desert soil. A. Yes there is, and you are correct. Our desert soils normally need amending at planting time but they are full of nutrients if they are not poisonous to plants. If you watch online videos or get information from outside sources, they may tell you it’s a waste of money to improve the soil at the time of planting. They may be correct in other locations but under our desert conditions it usually isn’t true. Planting 3000 fruit trees directly in amended desert soil at an orchard in Las Vegas, Nevada. In cases cited by outside sources, the soil already had enough organics in it that it made no difference; 2% organic content or higher. The research at Oklahoma State University during the 1970s clearly showed that no amendment to the soil was needed and mixing organics such as compost into the soil at the time of planting was a “waste of money”. This original research was repeated at Arizona State University where the researchers used an agricultural soil with a similar organic content; 2% or more. The researchers came to the same conclusion; the addition of organic matter (compost) was a waste of money. Ipso facto, no soil amendments are needed! Very practical original research often proves what we already know It is common knowledge that if the soil has an organic content more than 2% that no organic addition is needed and it’s a waste of money to mix in additional compost when planting trees and shrubs. What about soils with organic content much lower than 2%. Is organic matter still needed? That research is never been done. Many of our Mojave desert soils have an organic content much much lower than 1%. How do you know if your soil has an organic content above 2%? Send it to a soil testing lab (pay $70 and wait two weeks) where they can accurately measure the organic content of your soil and tell you its percentage. Or you can look at its color and approximately judge for yourself. The color of a soil darkens as the organic content increases. If your soil has a light tan color, the color of “creamy coffee” then it has a very low organic content; probably less than 2%. You can also do a “jar test” of your soil. The organics of a layer (if they are large enough) will float to the surface of the water. Soil jar test

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Digging Holes to Plant Fruit Trees

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Q. How big do you dig your holes for fruit trees? This was a hole dug for a bare root fruit tree about 1 inch in diameter. The whole is about 3 feet wide and not much deeper than needed for the roots. The soil taken from the whole was mixed about 50-50 with compost and used for planting around the tree roots. Water was added to the hole at the same time the soil was put around the roots. The trees were staked to prevent the roots from moving. A. I generally like to dig holes for fruit trees in five or 15 gallon containers about 3 feet wide and just deep enough for the root ball from the container. But the size of the hole depends on the condition of the soil for planting. If the soil is a very poor soil, I make the hole wider but not any deeper unless the soil does not drain water in several hours after filling it. These situations are rare. I don’t like deep holes for plants because of soil settling issues and causing plant problems later. Finished planting fruit trees at the Ahern Orchard in Las Vegas. Berms or doughnuts were created around each of the trees so they could be watered as soon as they were planted. They were watered three or four times immediately after planting to remove air pockets and sell the soil around the roots. Our desert soils can be unusually hard but in some parts of the Las Vegas Valley there are “caliche layers” that are as hard as cement and require a jackhammer to break through them. If you or your neighbors have a pool and this layer was not found when it was put in, then you don’t have a caliche problem. The soil removed from the hole should be mixed with compost before planting. Use a mixture one part compost to one part soil. Another option is to use an “imported” soil mix for planting. If the compost used in the soil mix is “rich”, no fertilizer is needed for the first year after planting. If the compost is not rich, then add a starter fertilizer high in phosphorus to the soil mixture before planting. Rich compost is usually made with some sort of animal manure. Plant the tree the same depth as it was in the container making sure that the roots are covered with no more than 1 inch of soil. As this soil mixture is added to the hole, add water to the hole at the same time you add the soil/compost/fertilizer mixture. This slurry of water and soil mixture removes air pockets and results in a tree held solidly in the soil after planting. Small trees will not require staking if done right. Surround the plants with a donut and fill this donut with water several times during the next week before you turn it over to the irrigation system.

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Pruning Fruit Trees at Planting

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Q. I planted some barefoot fruit trees earlier this year and unfortunately several did not survive. This was my fault since I didn’t get them planted right away and the roots may have dried out. I want to replace them with container nursery stock. The problem is that I want to prune the trees to knee to height per your ladderless orchard recommendations. All the nursery stock trees have limbs well above this height. If purchased and planted now, can these trees be cut back to the lower height when planted and survive? A. They can be pruned back provided the stems are not too large in diameter. Pick smaller container plants that are in good health. They will catch up or even surpass the size of larger container stock. I would make sure that the stem or trunk is well under an inch in diameter so you can cut them back. This should produce several new stems about 8 to ten inches below your cut. Some fruit trees sucker better than others. Peach and nectarine, for instance, have a harder time sending new shoots up after they have been cut if the diameter is too large. You should not kill the tree if you do this provided the diameter is small.

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