[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Re: TH: compacted soil
Post-To: Tree-House@Majordomo.Flora.Com (Community Forestry) ----------
-------
On Sun, 1 Jun 1997, Laura Canis wrote: --------------------------------
> <The soil under old, well-established trees is usually poor and very
> hard-packed, and it is a job to get even good-natured pachysandra
> successfully rooted. The trick is to get hold of an old, low-sided
> wooden box, knock out the bottom, and, if you are garden proud, paint
> the sides green. Set this on the ground underneath the tree near the
> trunk and fill it up with rich compost. Then plant the ground cover in
> that. By the time the wooden sides have rotted and been removed, the
> plants will be thoroughly established> ...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Laura -
Thank you for the great letter -- we are always looking for interesting
tips n' tricks that might not occur to one spontaneously. (Such concepts
are referred to as being 'unintuitive' -- a condition that I believe
drives Tree-House -- wherein best answers are not always arrived at
through brute logic or other predictable means) ... Currently we are
hearing testimonies both for and against plantings around trees.
I'm pretty neutral myself, although I would like to plant some (non-
hardy) annuals just for their color -- their side-effects being
temporary. But I don't want to compromise the tree's health either.
Two comments on the above, Laura: Raising the soil-height around trees
can be disastrous if taken higher than the tree can tolerate in a
single season. You've seen landscaped areas where trees are growing
out of round stone 'wells' in the middle of a lawn? These are where
the ground-level was elevated around the tree, and the tree's original
footing was preserved. A little extra compost and mulch is usually
beneficial, but some enthusiastic tree-lovers build overly-tall planter
boxes around their street trees -- rather common here in Baltimore.
Also pachysandra and other denser groundcovers should be clipped
away from the base of the tree, if only a couple of inches, to promote
air circulation and to discourage constant moisture, fungii etc.
(un)subscribe Requests:
Richard@Flora.Com
For Tree-House - A place to enjoy some interesting points of view ...
--------------------------+--------------------+-----------------------
Richard Tryzno Ellsberry | Flora's Garden | Baltimore USDA Zone 7
--------------------------+-(http://Flora.Com)-+-----------------------
References: