tommy@houxa.UUCP (T.WEIDNER) (01/04/85)
Has anyone had any success or knowledge of planting a christmas
tree? We purchased a 4' Norway Spruce on Dec. 22 and kept it
in the shed till Christmas eve. We kept it in the house for
10 days and it is now on our porch. The hole is dug. The
question is should we plant it now or wait till warmer
weather.
Thanks,
Tom Weidner
!houxa!tommykathyf@eros.UUCP (Kathy Friend) (01/07/85)
> Has anyone had any success or knowledge of planting a christmas > tree? We purchased a 4' Norway Spruce on Dec. 22 and kept it > in the shed till Christmas eve. We kept it in the house for > 10 days and it is now on our porch. The hole is dug. The > question is should we plant it now or wait till warmer > weather. > > Thanks, > Tom Weidner > !houxa!tommy My family has gotten live trees for a number of years with good results. We plant the tree about a week after it 'comes down' from being a decoration, mostly because thats when we have the time. If the climate you are in is very cold (i.e. you get snow instead of rain, and the ground is hard), the Better Homes and Gardens Gardening Book suggests waiting until the ground thaws and the temp averages about 30 degrees F. If this is the case, and you keep the tree outside, it is also better if you wrap the roots of the tree with burlap or plastic to protect it from severe cold. Bringing the tree inside sometimes makes the roots tender, I guess. My dad never worried about this because we live in an area that goes below freezing for only a few days each year. The sooner we got the tree in the ground, the better the tree seemed to do. A good trick to use when planting the tree is to put a clay tile or metal pipe about 3" in diameter and a foot long at ground level at the edge of your hole when planting the tree. This really helps when watering the tree next summer. Good Luck! kathy friend tektronix!kathyf Portland, Oregon