Flower Garden Lovers

Planting Shrubs in Your Flower Garden
Part 3

Now that you are ready to put your shrub in the ground, move quickly but carefully. Do not damage any of the roots. Carefully loosen the roots a bit but try not to tear any of the hair like feeder roots. This is best done with your fingers. You are not trying to break the whole thing totally apart, just loosen it a bit.

A balled and burlapped shrub can be set straight into the hole with the burlap intact. If there is a wire cage, once you have the shrub in the hole, cut the cage and gently try to remove as much as you can. The roots can grow through the burlap itself as it decomposes but you should cut away the twine. Pulling the bag away from the plant, cut it up a bit into strips to hasten the process. Without cutting any roots try to "scarify", or scratch with a hand trowel, the outside of the ball to loosen it a bit.

Make sure that no part of the burlap is exposed above ground once the shrub is totally planted. Leaving some burlap above ground tends to act as a wick that draws moisture away from your flowering shrub, drying it out.

Carefully, now that your shrub is at the correct height (you did make sure about that, didn't you?), start filling the hole. Gentle, gentle. Make sure there is good contact with the roots by "heeling in" the soil as you go. You can if you wish, when the hole is about two-thirds full, water the plant to help settle the soil. Once this soaks in, continue to fill the hole.

Now that the shrub is planted and the hole filled, build a small mound around the outer edge of what was the hole. This will create a saucer like area that will more readily hold water when you water.

You should also consider mulching around the shrub to keep in the moisture but keep the mulch 6 inches away from the shrub itself. Keep your plant well watered for its first few weeks, or if you live out in the dry west like me, for the first season of growth. Just keep a close eye on the weather and your shrub. Water for deep penetration of the soil, not shallow. You need to get that water down to the roots.

There is a neat gizmo called the Secret Soaker that you may wish to consider that allows you to get water to the roots through a tube and uses capillary action. This has been proven to be a most effective watering choice.

Pruning may need to be done at the time of planting. Certainly if there are any flowers on your flowering shrub, they should be removed. The old rule of the mass above ground should equal the mass below ground prevails here.

I hope you found this series of articles on planting flowering shrubs in your flower garden informative and entertaining. As shrubs are one way to define a garden room within your flower garden, it's good to know how to plant them. These instructions generally apply to planting trees also.

If there is any specific kind of gardening tip article you wish to see, please let me know by emailing me at Sandra AT flowergardenlovers.com. And please consider our Garden Supply pages for your flower garden shopping needs.

© 2005, Sandra Dinkins-Wilson

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