PLANT WITH CONFIDENCE
What you’ll need:
- Good sturdy shovel
- A+ Planting Mix
- Plant Food
- Pruners or a knife
- Mulch
- Garden hose
- Watering wand
- Dig a hole that is slightly shallower and at least 6” wider than the root ball on all sides. Plant a little high!
- Mix your existing soil with a soil conditioner such as A+ Planting Mix. The ratio should be about 1/3A+ Planting Mix to 2/3 existing soil.
- Prep the root ball for planting – for container grown plants, you must cut into and loosen the outer roots and gently pull them away from the root ball. Use pruners or a knife to cut into the ball at least 1” deep from top to bottom spaced 3-7” apart. Balled & burlapped plants don’t need any preparation.
- Plant with the top of the ball slightly higher than ground level (1-2” high for smaller plants and 2-4” high for larger plants and trees). Then backfill the amended soil mixture around the root ball, gently tamping the soil as you go. When the hole is 2/3backfilled, add Plant Food. Then continue backfilling the soil up to the shoulder of the root ball, but not on top. Top it off with 2” of mulch.
- Water your plant slowly, deeply and thoroughly right after you plant to complete the planting process. Use a watering wand and completely saturate the root ball and the surrounding soil.
Watering tips:
Check for moisture before you water! Until the root system is well established – usually one full
year – you should check the soil for moisture to accurately determine how wet or dry it is. If the soil is dry, water thoroughly until the root ball and surrounding soil are wet again. If it’s moist, don’t water the plant and check back late. The objective is to try to find that “happy medium” – neither too wet nor too dry. You should never water a plant unless it needs water.
Hanging Basket
Do Not Allow Your Hanging Baskets To Dry Out Completely Keep Moderately Moist
In the event that your basket dries out & plants wilt, water needs to be given several times to re-soak basket
When watering your basket & water runs out the bottom, it could be caused by being too wet, but most likely because it is too dry
When checking your basket for water, lift the basket to see how heavy it is and put your finger in the soil to determine how moist it is – you will learn how heavy your basket should be.
Do:
- Use a watering wand whenever possible to deeply and thoroughly soak the root ball and surrounding soil of each plant. Once you totally saturate the root zone of your new plants, don’t water them again until they need water.
- A few days after watering, check the root ball of your plant for moisture before watering again. Dig down
- about 4-5” and pull a small amount of soil from the edge of the root ball for close examination. If it’s moist, it doesn’t need water. Cover the hole back up and check again in a couple of days. If it’s dry, water thoroughly.
- Continue in this manner and only water your plants when they need water. In the spring and fall, check the soil moisture every 3-5 days. In the summer, check the soil moisture every 2 days for smaller plants and every 3-5 days for larger plants and trees.
Don’t
- Don’t allow your plants to completely dry out! Not watering deeply or frequently enough will kill your plants.
- Don’t over water your plants either! Too much water literally drowns the plants’ roots. Follow the golden rule- always check for moisture before you water.
- Don’t forget to make arrangements for a friend or neighbor to water your plants when you go on vacation. Give them our number in case they have any questions.
