Plant a Tree at Home

Good for your wallet: Having trees around your house can reduce your utility bills by up to 12%!¹ Trees shade your house on sunny days and block wind on stormy days saving you money on both your heating and cooling expenses. In addition, a mature tree can be valued at upwards of $10,000 and having trees around your property increases its value an average of 10%.²

Good for the environment: Planting a tree fights the process of global warming because trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as part of their natural metabolic processes. Better yet, trees also return oxygen to the atmosphere through this process. On top of that, trees improve air quality by absorbing and filtering pollutants and other accumulating particulates making the air healthier to breathe.³ Lastly, planting a tree provides food and shelter for wildlife.

Good for your home: Trees can make your home and property feel more comfortable. They are great sound barriers, blocking noise from passing cars and noisy neighbors, and can keep your home’s sense of peace and quiet. If you plant the trees strategically, they can also provide great privacy for your family and your yard. Additionally, if your area is susceptible to flash flooding, a single tree can intercept more than 1,000 gallons of water.⁴

Good for you: Just the sight of trees can help us relieve stress. Dr. Roger S. Ulrich from Texas A&M University discovered that, “In laboratory research, visual exposure to settings with trees has produced significant recovery from stress within five minutes, as indicated by changes in blood pressure and muscle tension.”⁴buying trees or seedlings online.

Time and effort: Moderate
A healthy tree will be chosen well, planted carefully, and maintained thoroughly. This process can be relatively simple and easy as long as you take steps to prevent any foreseeable problems. There are three main steps to planting your tree: planning, planting, and maintaining. TreeHelp provides an excellent resource for aiding in each of these steps-while also providing resources for materials.

Planning

1. When to plant: The absolute best time to plant a tree depends on your area, but early fall or early spring is a good bet so your plant won’t dry up or freeze before it has a chance to lay its roots. In general, however, you can plant your tree during any season as long as there is no frost on the ground.
   
2. Where to plant: Research your local community laws and regulations regarding tree planting. Often trees cannot be planted too close to sidewalks and utility structures. Determine the location of the utilities, if any, with which you might be interfering. Look for overhead or underground cables — television, cable, phone, Internet and underground lines — natural gas, water, and sewer. If you don’t know or can’t figure out where they are in your yard, call your local utility company. Here are some general guidelines to follow:
   • Within 20 feet of any cable lines, only plant trees that grow under 25 feet tall.⁶For a 50-foot distance in front of your house, only plant trees that are less than 20 feet tall.Behind your house, you can plant trees as tall as 60 feet.
     
   
   
   If you want to shade your house, plant trees first on the west side of your house, then on the east side if you like. Try to leave the south window unshaded because it shades well in the winter but is less effective when the sun is overhead in the summer.⁹ However, if you do want the window shaded, plant a deciduous tree that will lose its foliage early in the fall. Planting tall and dense evergreens in rows can block your home against the wind, insulating windy properties.
   
3. What to plant: The best plants for your area can be determined by a few factors. The USDA plant hardiness zones tell you the average minimum temperature of your area. You should also take into consideration other factors like the growing season (the total number of frost-free days), wind, soil, humidity, drainage, and day length. If you need help, look for trees that are native to your area, since you can be sure they are suited to your microclimate. However, if one species is extremely overplanted in your area, don’t plant it, since diseases or insects can be much more devastating when all the trees in one area have the same vulnerability. Buy a tree that fits the function you are looking for—from producing fruits, to aesthetics, to shading, or creating privacy. Keep in mind how much space and maintenance you are able to provide the tree when it reaches full maturity.
   
4. Purchase your seedling: When purchasing your tree seedling, if you have a choice between container grown, balled and burlapped, or bare root, choose the container grown. Container grown seedlings are easier to grow because little damage has been done to the roots. Balled and burlapped seedlings have had their roots reduced by about 90-95% and may experience transplant shock, but in some nurseries they are given the chance to regenerate their roots before being sold. Look for these. Bare-root trees are generally smaller and cheaper, and the roots must be kept moist until they are planted. Also, look for any other warning signs on the tree. Make sure the root system is well-branched, symmetrical, and not circling or wrapping around the trunk. Pick a seedling that can stand straight on its own without being over dependent on stakes. Also, avoid seedlings with bark that has any sign of damage, splitting, or discoloration.
   

Materials:

• Spades
• Shovels
• Bands
• Tree Pruning Shears
• Stakes

1. Transport the tree: When loading the tree into your car, be very careful not to damage any root systems, as these will absorb the nutrients that keep the tree alive. After leaving the nursery, try to plant the seedlings as quickly as possible, keeping it moist until it is transplanted. Don’t wash or shake the gel on the roots, since this gel can actually help in keeping the roots moist and adapting it to the new soil. If you must store the seedling, keep the seedling at cool, comfortable temperatures, not letting it overheat or freeze. Most seedlings thrive in temperatures between 60-70F degrees. Do not open the seedling bag until you are just about to plant it.
   
2. Prepare the soil: Make sure your soil has good drainage and the right pH (between 5.5-7). You can test for the proper pH with a common pH indicator kit. Add lime if you have low pH and add sulfur if you have high pH. If it hasn’t rained heavily for the past few days, you can also test for drainage by digging a hole about a foot deep and filling it with water. Wait 24 hours and if there is still water in the hole, you have a drainage problem. Talk to your local nursery professional about what amendments to add to the soil. After checking your soil, you should loosen the soil all around the root zone in a circle around the tree with a radius of 3 feet and depth of 1 foot. This can be done with shovels and spades and many other tools you may have except rototillers, which do not penetrate deeply enough.
   
3. Dig the hole: Using a shovel, dig a hole as deep as the root ball and two to three times as wide. If your city requires you to have a root barrier, which prevents roots from pushing against the sidewalk, then dig up a hole the size of the root barrier.
   
4. Unpot the tree: If the seedling is balled and burlapped, remove any nails and ropes. Cut away the material and set in at the bottom. The top foot of any wire basket should also be cut away. Container grown tree seedlings should be removed from the container, and any circling roots should be unwound. If the seedling is bare root, clip a quarter inch off the bottom of each root to stimulate growth.
   
5. Set the tree: Make sure a part of the trunk flare (the base of the tree where the roots spread) will still be visible when you backfill the hole. If not, add a mound of soil to the hole and place the seedling on top of that. Or, you can take away the soil around the flare until it becomes visible. Orient the tree to your preference, taking into consideration any unevenness of the tree. If one side has more foliage, turn that side towards the wind. If you live in a particularly sunny climate, have the foliage side face the sun, to protect the bark from sunburn. Make sure the tree stands upright.
   
6. Backfill the hole: Fill the hole up again with the native soil. As you backfill, stop every few shovels, pat the soil down, and water the area with a low flow hose. This will reduce air pockets and will allow the soil to settle. For especially dry seedlings, dig a basin all around the hole and fill it with water.
   
7. Staking: Remove any stakes that came with the tree. If the tree doesn’t need a stake, don’t use one. If it does, hold the tree with one hand and find the height at which the portion of the tree above your hand is able to support itself. Place 2 stakes perpendicularly to the wind direction so the tree will be supported against the any gusts. Get two loose bands, not wires, around the tree and down to 6 inches above the supportable height you found. Make figure eights with the 2 ties with the tree in one loop and the stake in the other. Cut the stakes off 2 inches above where the ties are, giving the branches room to grow. Stakes should only be used for a maximum of one year.
   
8. Mulch: Cover the surface around the seedling with 3-4 inches of organic mulch, spanning to around a 2-3 foot radius from the seedling. However, keep the mulch at least 6 inches from the trunk. The mulch can consist of bark, wood chips, pine needles, or leaves. The mulch will keep the topsoil temperate, reduce evaporation, and prevent the surface from crusting.
   
9. Water: After planting, water your plant thoroughly, keeping it moist but not soaking. Water every few days to a week until the rainy season. In dry weather, water more often. Water it slowly to a depth of at least a foot.

Planting America, Inc. offers a how-to video of these steps:

https://web.archive.org/web/20160403225939if_/http://www.youtube.com/embed/OZXmgh_cRFY ¹²

Maintenance

1. Prune the tree very little at first. After a full season, prune to your preference. Pruning can stimulate growth, but be sure not to just lop off the top of the trunk, since this can produce thin, spindly, and vulnerable branches. As the seedling matures into a tree, allow only a main trunk to develop, pruning away any secondary, co-dominant stem. Decide which branches will be the permanent ones, and only allow branches to grow when evenly spaced from each other. For a comprehensive step-by-step guide, go to tree-pruning.com.
   
2. As your tree matures, check for common health problems:
   
   • Dehydration: A tree that gets too much heat and too little water may be dehydrating. Premature yellowing, browning, or falling leaves are a sign of this. In case of this, water the tree more regularly and protect the tree from wind.
     
   • Sun Scald: When the tree is still young and in a cold climate, the sun can temporarily thaw bark, which the cold night will refreeze and kill. Signs of this are dead spots on the tree. If you suspect this is happening, you can protect the other parts of the tree with plastic tree guards or painting the tree with white latex paint.
     
   • Freeze Cracking: Trees in cold climates are highly susceptible to the sudden changes in temperature. These cause the wood to react differently, creating a visible and long crack down the trunk.
     
   • Stifled Roots: If your tree is growing excessively slowly and has few or discolored leaves, it may not be getting enough nutrients through its roots. Improper soil or girdling roots cause this, and it can only be rectified by digging up the roots of the seedling and either changing the soil or unwinding the roots.
     
   • Iron Deficiency: Trees that are getting enough water but are still yellowing, browning, or shedding leaves may not be getting enough iron, due to the high pH of the soil. To raise the iron level of the tree, there are three options. You can add fertilizer with sulfur and iron, inject the tree with iron salts, or spray the foliage with a mixture of sulfur and iron.
     
   • Herbicides: Leaves that have distorted growth, browning, and are shedding may be getting overexposure to herbicides. Herbicides can permeate the air or the soil through overreaching roots. If you are absolutely positive that herbicide is the problem, cut down the tree to 4 inches from the ground and let it regrow, preventing any further herbicide exposure.
     
   • Machines: Humans often wound a tree with lawn mowers and weed whips without even knowing it. Wounds on the tree that expose healthy living tissue can weaken the tree and make it more susceptible to disease and insects. To correct this, lawn mowers and weed whips should avoid any contact with the base of the tree.