Before You Plant Seedlings
Seedlings will arrive as bare-root, meaning the plants do not have any soil around the roots. Seedlings must be planted within one day of arrival, since they are susceptible to drying, or placed directly into cold storage.
If you are planting in a few days:
• Keep the plants in their delivery bag and place them in a refrigerator cooled to 38–48°F. If not available, keep in a cool area (garage, basement), out of direct sun. Do not stack bags.
• The day before planting day, pull the plants out of the refrigerator and gently untangle the roots.
• Soak the plant roots for 1–2 hours by placing seedlings in a 5-gallon bucket of water to ensure roots won’t dry out.
Bareroots are fragile and require cool temperatures and wet conditions. Too much heat can cause mold to grow on seedlings and roots, killing them, so be sure to keep seedlings cool and moist to prevent mold growth.
Plan Your Project
The key to a successful conservation planting is to take some time to plan your project. First, determine the goal for the planting (e.g., promoting pollinators or streambank stabilization). Different plants serve different purposes and can be chosen to suit your planting goals.
Once you have selected your species, look at how large the tree or shrub is expected to grow. You want to ensure you have planned enough space between plants so they have room to grow and survive. Plants grown too closely together can be prone to disease and other issues in the future.
For plant spacing, we recommend these general guidelines:
Maintain Your Seedlings
• Water plants weekly during dry conditions for one year after planting to ensure successful establishment.
• Install tree tubes, tree fencing, and weed mats to help protect your plants from predators such as white-tailed deer and voles. Five-foot tree tubes or fencing is recommended. Tree tubes should only be used on hardwood trees and shrubs.
• Check tree protection materials regularly to make sure tree tubes are upright, weed mats are secured to the ground, and deer fencing does not need repair.
HIGHLY RECOMMENEDED by LGC - Please look at DEC How to Plant a Tree and Watch a clip about tree planting
