Time to Think About Planting Trees

If you’re thinking about planting some trees on your property, now is a good time to start planning.

The best time to plant trees in Texas is late October. But it takes a little planning.

First, you need to find the kind of trees you want to plant. If you want to plant fruit trees, be sure to select varieties best suited for this area. Most fruit trees require a period of cold weather to flower and develop properly. Different varieties of fruit trees have been developed for regions with different chill hours, which are the number of hours when temperatures are between 32 and 45ºF.

Fayette County lies in a region that receives an average of 600 chill hours with a range between 450 and 700 chill hours. When selecting fruit trees, pay close attention to the label. It should say how many chill hours that tree needs to set fruit.

This isn’t a concern for ornamental trees like oaks or sycamores. Live oaks thrive in this area, especially in blackland, but they’re slowgrowing. Post oaks and blackjack oaks prefer sandy soil. Mexican oaks, also known as Monterrey oaks, aren’t really native to this area. But they are often planted in landscaping due to their quick growth. If you’re looking for a fastgrowing shape tree, consider a Mexican sycamore.

Once you decide what kind of tree to plant, select a good location. Trees need sunlight, obviously. And you’ll probably have to water it for the first couple of years before the roots fully develop. So pick a location with a water source nearby.

Most trees won’t grow in soil that stays overly moist. You can test the drainage by digging a hole and filling it up with water. If it takes longer than 24 hours to drain, pick a different location.

I would not plant any trees just yet. Wait about a month until the end of October, when it starts to cool off a bit. Before you plant your tree, locate the root “flare” or “collar.” This is the part of the tree where the roots meet the trunk.

Sometimes nursery trees are planted too deeply in their pots to begin with. You may need to remove some of the soil from the pot to locate the flare. If you plant the tree with the flare covered by soil, the tree will likely suffer from disease and stress problems. So be sure to plant it correctly to begin with. Dig a wide, dish-shaped hole just deep enough so that the root flare is above the surface. A deep, straight-walled hole will encourage the roots to grow in a circle. They prefer growing in the loose soil that you backfill. When the roots reach the compacted soil at the edge of the hole, they circle around themselves. Instead, a dish-shaped hole encourages the roots to grow down and out, providing a much more stable foundation. Backfill the hole with only the soil you dug out. Don’t add fertilizer, compost or any other amendments to the soil. If you do, the roots will want to grow in the nutrient rich zone in the hole instead of growing down and out. Don’t stake the tree unless necessary. It needs to get used to the prevailing winds. If you keep a tree staked for very long, it tends to get weak.

You can mulch the surface around the tree, but keep the mulch several inches away from the trunk. Mulching up to the trunk covers the root flare, leading to disease and stress problems. You may need to protect your young tree from wildlife or livestock. Build a fence or a cage around it, but don’t attach it to the tree. You want the tree to support itself.

Be sure to keep the tree watered for the first two growing seasons, especially during drought. It’s better to water deeply once a week rather than light, frequent watering.