Hi Cindi,

I am going to be transplanting a Tulip Poplar tree -- approximately three feet tall -- within the next week. Should I apply any fertilizer or other soil additive after the transplantation?


Thanks,
Keith

[quote:e2c0c5f4c0="knicholson1"]Hi Cindi,

I am going to be transplanting a Tulip Poplar tree -- approximately three feet tall -- within the next week. Should I apply any fertilizer or other soil additive after the transplantation?


Thanks,
Keith[/quote:e2c0c5f4c0]
Transplanting any garden plants, whether herbaceous perennials or woody shrubs and trees can be accomplished as long as a few simple concepts are kept in mind.

The first is the smaller the plant the better the chance of survival so don�t delay if you know you�ll need to move a plant. The sooner the better in this case.

Secondly, the more soil you can keep around the root system the better. Although many plants are shipped bare root during their dormant phase, when you are moving plants from place to place in your garden, it is still better to try to dig the roots system with a ball of soil around it.

You�ll also need to keep the roots moist during the process. Cover the roots with a burlap cloth or old sheet that has been dampened to hold in valuable soil moisture around the root system. When transplanting, dig the new planting area out first, before you dig the plant in order to shortened the time out of ground as much as possible.

Try to cut as few roots as possible. Even though it is generally stated that plants dug from the nursery for sale lose 95% of their roots system and still survive, few of us will ever get enough experience with digging to reach the level of expertise of nursery professionals. The general rule of thumb is to dig one foot of root ball for every one inch of trunk diameter to try to get as many of the feeder roots and anchor roots as possible.

Make sure that you put the new transplant at the same soil level where it was originally growing. Only dig the new hole as deep as the root ball. Although you want to dig out the planting area 2-4 times as wide as the root ball.

Refill the planting hole to half the depth with the native soil and water well to settle the soil. Then continue refilling the planting hole and water the new transplant well. Apply mulch at the base of the plant, but not directly next to the trunk. Creating a �well� around the base of the plant with mulch will help the water to stay put and soak in without running off.

Maintaining adequate soil moisture is absolutely critical for the first couple of growing seasons to ensure good establishment of plants. You can use a half strength solution of a water soluble fertilizer when you transplant, but don't use a granular until the tree has been in the ground for a growing season.