Fall Planting Conifers

~ By Kythera Ann ~

A conifer (in this article) will refer to a tree belonging to the order Gymnospermae, that is evergreen with needle shaped like leaves. Conifers bear cones (hence, coniferous).

I've always loved conifers. Maybe it is the warm memories I associate with them from decorating during the holidays as a child. Perhaps it is the awe the first Redwood tree I saw invoked. So much awe that I decided, in that moment, as a small child, that I would live surrounded by them as an adult.

There are several kinds of Redwood trees, but the ones I fell in love with are Sequoia sempervirens – more commonly called Coast Redwood or California Redwood. The California Redwood includes the tallest trees in the world, reaching up to 115.5 m (379.1 ft) in height and 8 m (26 ft) diameter at breast height. They are so tall that they take moisture in two ways! From their roots for the first hundred feet or so of height and then from their needles for the rest. This is why they only grow where fog is present. They are long lived; they have been recorded to be over 2000 years old. As the oldest tree in the world, where they stood dinosaurs walked under their branches!

Some other amazing things about the California Redwood is that although they do have cones (tiny, about one half inch long) they are a "monoecious tree" (a tree species having female and male sexual organs on the same plant). Besides growing from cones they grow from burls (a large, rounded knot growth on a tree) and most commonly from its roots! One often comes across what is termed a "Redwood Cathedral" in the forest. A circle of California Redwoods, with a glade in the center. The circle of trees grew from the roots of the tree that had been in the center!

Redwood forests are just that, Redwoods. No other tree can survive with them and only ferns grow naturally beneath them. I can go on and on about the amazing things about California Redwoods, but this is supposed to be about planting, specifically in the fall, conifers, (grin).

I lived in the Redwood forest forty five minutes south of San Francisco for over thirty years. There was no fall planting of the trees, no planting of anything ever. Being such mild weather all over the San Francisco area, outside the Redwood forest, trees are just planted whenever you want and fall preparation for anything just doesn't exist.

Recently I moved to the Smokey Mountains of North Carolina (part of the Appalachian range). It is a mixed forest of deciduous and evergreens, heavy on the deciduous types. My first fall I was amazed as the mountains turned a riot of color, breathtaking. But then winter came and the mountains (appeared to me) as if a huge fire had come through...because in California, that is the only reason one would see so many bare trees. I missed the ever present green in my world. I also found that my privacy, with the fall of the leaves, was no longer existent. I'm not used to ever having to put curtains up or have anyone see me in my yard. Even as a child in San Francisco we had a gated eight foot brick fence all around the property...in the Redwoods I was held in the womb of their evergreen presence.

So, I needed to create privacy and green in my world! Of course the first thing I looked at was planting Redwoods, (we do have fog). Alas and alack, yes they will grow here, but they stay dwarfed, never growing much over 25 feet (so sad!). Articles say they don't know why, but I think it is the seasonal changes that are much more extreme and the clay like soil. But in any case, I wanted TALL, blocking, thick evergreens around the entire perimeter of our acreage.

My next considerations, besides height and thickness, was speed of growth and disease resistance. One doesn't want to spend a ton of money getting trees, to find out that they are likely to get sick at some point. At my age (50+) I also didn't want to have to wait 20 years or more for the trees to get large enough to block views. So I did a ton of research.

To meet my criteria on all counts, I came up with a hybrid between Thuja standishi and Thuja plicata which has been named as the cultivar Thuja 'Green Giant'. It is a form of cypress. It gets about 60 feet tall with a 12-20 foot branch spread at the base. Planted 4-8 feet apart it makes an impenetrable screen (the farther apart you plant them, the taller they will grow). It grows 3-5 feet a year when young! It is very hardy in all environments and soils and lights AND it is not prone to any bug infestations or diseases! Works for me (big smile). I could have my privacy back easily within 5 years, which is amazing for a conifer!

So how was I supposed to plant these things and when? Luckily the local arborists know all of that so they told me:) Here, they plant conifers in the fall. Why? Conifers really love the fall season. The brilliant sunshine, cooler temperatures, and more reliable soil moisture of autumn provide the perfect growing conditions for conifers. Early and mid autumn are the best times for planting conifers.

I also found out that fall planting of the conifer was simple! Basically digging a hole, putting the tree in, filling it and then mulching. I can deal with that! Here are a few more planting details especially for the Green Giants I planted:

• Green Giants like full to partial sun. Dig each hole approximately twice the diameter of the root system and not deeper than the root ball. Loosen the soil on the walls of the planting hole so the roots can easily penetrate the soil.

• Set the tree in the planting hole. Don't dig deeper than necessary since the tree needs firm support from below to keep from settling. The top of the root ball of the Thuja Green Giant should be slightly above the nearby soil. Spread out the roots in the hole. Make sure the tree trunk is straight vertically.

• Finely loosen the soil and remove any rocks and grass before you start to fill the hole back in with the dirt. Apply water as you go to remove air pockets in the dirt. Water well again after the planting is complete. Make sure your Thujas get water during drought times during the first year at least.

• Adding mulch to a Thuja Green Giant will help retain moisture and keep grass and weeds down. Mulch should be 2"-3" deep. Leave a ring around the trunk free of mulch several inches wide (this allows the trunk to "breathe" and helps promote the trees' growth).

So if you want more green in your life consider planting a conifer this fall! Spring is also a doable time almost everywhere to plant conifers, but fall is their "happy" time for planting. I want my conifers happy, don't you?

         

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