Plant trees is a passion that is involving millions of Italians, especially those who are lucky enough to have a family orchard. But what is the best time to plant trees? The answer is complex, since there can be several periods to do it correctly and we must also distinguish between evergreen trees And deciduous.
Usually, we tend to think that the best time is spring, in reality the most favorable planting period for an orchard is autumn, for a series of reasons that we will explain in the article.
Tree Transplant Stress
Planting a tree means subjecting it to severe stress at the time of planting. The young sapling, in fact, is transferred to a new environmental situation, in a different terrain and with often cut roots (bare root trees). The aerial part of the tree, in order to produce new shoots and vegetation, must carry out the photosynthesis. To do this, it uses reserve substances. Even the roots they must take root on new soil and explore it, drawing on their reserves. The two systems, aerial and radical, should not compete in the very delicate post-implantation phase. For this reason, the trees must be planted in an optimal period, with limited stress for the plant and when the aerial part lags behind the root.
Planting trees in the fall
The best time to plant trees in the orchard is autumn. This is especially true for those a bare root, or those young trees grown in the nursery and uprooted as they are before the sale, which takes place without bread of earth. The trees sold with bare root are usually deciduous and for large plants, such as pome fruit (Apple tree, However, quince) and stone fruit (plum, apricot, peach, Cherry tree, almond tree). In autumn they still have dormant buds, while the roots are always active. By planting in this period, therefore, we avoid the aforementioned competition, with the roots having time to take root and grow on the ground of the orchard.
The tree, until the beginning of spring, will produce new roots that will provide new raw sap (water and nutrients) to the vegetation ready to explode in the spring period. In other words, at the vegetative restart the trees planted in autumn have a well developed root system.
When to plant trees with earthen bread?
If bare-root trees are always planted in autumn, a different argument should be made for trees with bread of earth, those commonly found in nurseries. The tree grown in earthen bread, or in pots, already has a more developed root system, so it suffers less stress when we plant it in the orchard. Mind you, even trees grown in bread of earth can be planted in autumn (recommended), but often, especially in the family, they are planted in late winter or early spring.
Deciduous trees
For deciduous trees, however, it is not necessary to go too far with the planting period. Furthermore, it is necessary to plant them, if possible, before the buds open, therefore between January and early March, depending on the species.
Evergreen trees
Evergreen trees, such as citrus fruits andolive tree, they can be planted even further, for example in early spring. The important thing, in this case, is to have plenty of water available, as the newly planted trees are very thirsty.
The risks of late planting
As mentioned, late planting of the orchard is a common practice for trees with earthen bread and in the home. But, for the same reasons mentioned above, it carries risks. By planting them late, in fact, the root system has less time available to expand and therefore establish a balanced relationship between the aerial and root systems. The risk is that the trees, in the first year of life, have less vigor and poor reproductive aptitude (development of new shoots and leaves). They will also need more attention, with frequent watering and fertilizing.
When to plant exotic trees in the orchard
The speech made so far on the time of implantation is valid for the classic fruit trees, those typical of the Mediterranean area. Different considerations must be made for exotic fruit trees, such as avocado, mango, papayaetc.
Exotic fruit trees are usually evergreen and gentler when it comes to the climate. They do not have need in cold and suffer from too low temperatures.
So it’s always better to plant exotic trees in spring, helping them with continuous watering, so that they have time to root and gradually acclimate. A transfer from the nursery to the orchard done in the fall and with winter just around the corner could be fatal for an exotic young tree, even in areas with a mild climate.
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