I grew up on a farm with apple orchards and vineyards. On my current homestead, I've planted nearly 500 trees (hardwoods, spruces, etc.) over the past 3 years (my legacy /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif). When I was a younger guy on the parents place, we would plant almost every year... There are a number of ways to do this. When we first started, we used to dig holes with a PHD... these were all dwarf varieties about 20 feet apart in rows around 20 feet apart (much of this depends upon your variety of tree and as indicated earlier, your mowing requirements). These days, I use a PHD when appropriate (if the 12 " auger is the right diameter depending on the tree's root ball).
Soil. Where I grew up, the soil was very porous... Today, I plant my trees with a special soil mix I make up to compensate for the hard pan where I currently live. I also find that mounding is most appropriate as the roots will rot with many varieties if allow ed to sit in the water. The special soil mix contains a great deal of sand and peat to cope with both the sitting water and the dry spells... Mounding is critical w/hard pan (raised bed).
Hole. the key (as indicated earlier) is to dig a hole which is at least 2 to 3 times as wide as the root ball. If you're getting those trees from the Soil and Water conservation for a dollar each and they don't have root balls, your PHD will do. These days, I use a PHD when appropriate (if the 12 " auger is the right diameter depending on the tree's root ball). Commercial operations (like when I was a kid) use a special tree planter that hangs off the back of the tractor. It digs the trench while someone sits on the rig and puts a tree in and buries the roots right after you put the tree in... It's really neat to see in action and fun to do (relative to the other methods).
Timing: I agree with the other comments on spring or fall. Fall is good for strong root growth. Spring feels right but my experience has shown me that tends to be chancier.... Keep in mind that the roots will continue to grow on the tree until the ground freezes (slower and slower but that's the deal).
Watering. First year is critical.... a thorough watering ONCE a week will suffice.. .any less will kill... more may be too much.
Theres so much more to know and different things work fine but hope this helps. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
