planting seedlings into the ground

[rrgg126]

hey guys so i bought a 2-3 yr old trident and japanese maple and I was wondering if I need to put it on a tile before I plant it in the ground. The root system is about 4-6 inches deep with not a lot of lateral growth so I didnt want to reduce it in the middle of spring just to put it on a tile. I want to develop nebari and a shallow rootball asap but didnt want to rush it. Should I just keep in the ground for a couple yrs and then put it on a tile?

 

[cmeg1]

Perhaps you can grow it out in a 9" plastic colander for the season and then plant in the ground in late summer/fall.
I did that with some Coreana Hornbeams.It is a good way to get the root system fibrous before it goes in the ground.
I planted mine on 12" tiles.I found it important to mulch them in so I do not over water.

 

[Eric Group]

hey guys so i bought a 2-3 yr old trident and japanese maple and I was wondering if I need to put it on a tile before I plant it in the ground. The root system is about 4-6 inches deep with not a lot of lateral growth so I didnt want to reduce it in the middle of spring just to put it on a tile. I want to develop nebari and a shallow rootball asap but didnt want to rush it. Should I just keep in the ground for a couple yrs and then put it on a tile?

Is it a Trident or a Japanese Maple?

They can both take some root work, but with young trees if they are already fully leafed out, I would either slip pot to the colander like a meg said, or just plant them in the ground without a lot of root pruning now.

Root work that is too vigorous our dramatically out of season is responsible for many of the tree deaths in bonsai. People will blame it on all sorts of things- weather, disease... I like to blame squirrels... But it can usually be traced back to us messing with the roots too much.

 

[rrgg126]

Is it a Trident or a Japanese Maple?

They can both take some root work, but with young trees if they are already fully leafed out, I would either slip pot to the colander like a meg said, or just plant them in the ground without a lot of root pruning now.

Root work that is too vigorous our dramatically out of season is responsible for many of the tree deaths in bonsai. People will blame it on all sorts of things- weather, disease... I like to blame squirrels... But it can usually be traced back to us messing with the roots too much.

haha...thanks eric i bought 2 young maples.....trident and a japanese. i think i will just plant them in the ground for a while.