I recently took a class on planting trees and the best advice I got was this: When digging the hole, convert the width of the trunk in inches to the number of feet wide the hole should be. For example, a tree with a 3 inch trunk should have a 3 foot wide hole. The edges should slope down toward the bottom gently to encourage water to collect at the base. Also, make sure that you keep all dirt and mulch away from the trunk. Sometimes nursuries will actually overfill the containers and burlap balls so that the trunk is partially buried. If you pile mulch up against the trunk, it will rot. Oh, and if you live in a region it snows a lot and plan on putting it near the road, you should shield it in the winter against all the snow plows and salt with a fence of burlap or some other material. Good luck!
One tip I do when planting any kind of tree. When I buy a tree or shrub, I take it out of the container, dig the hole for the tree and also dig the hole big enough on one side to insert the container. The container is buried beside the tree and when it comes time to water just fill the container and you will be sure the roots of the new tree will get plenty of water. After a season and the tree is doing well, just pull the container out or fill with soil.
Check with your county extension office, they will provide you with all the information you need for your area. They may even run a soil test for you to help you grown health trees.
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