Desert Orchard Expands to West Texas

One of our Orchard volunteers, Matt Heff, started a small orchard in West Texas, near the panhandle a bit south and west of Odessa. One year later his Orchard in now on its way with 100 fruit trees using two or three of each variety. He writes:

Hi Bob!

Matt Heff here.

Attached our Texas orchard pics 1 year later.

Wanted to show you the difference by planting clovers to recharge the Texas alkaline soil just like you and Jon told me to.

The orchard was covered in peat moss, Texas compost, manure and tons of clover seeds (different varieties).

Over 1,000 worms happily living in west Texas- notice the difference between worms and no worms photo?

We broke bud 2 weeks ago. Very early  and trees are very much Alive.

Job Posting: HEAD FARM MANAGER, MOHAVE COUNTY, Kingman, Arizona, USA

DESCRIPTION:  Head Farm Manager will provide strategic direction and hands-on leadership for a unique desert farming operation. The position requires the ability to manage a diverse, high-quality irrigated vegetable farming operation from start-up through post-harvest. Business expansion to include large and small livestock operation, orchard, vineyard and other high-value crops suitable for the middle desert environment. Applicant must have an appreciation for organic and sustainable food production. The Head Farm Manager will be responsible to coordinate with livestock range manager and corporate office of absentee owner. The ultimate farm operation to include 38,000 acres.

QUALIFICATIONS: 

·         5 Years management experience in farm operations in arid or desert environments

·         Minimum Bachelor’s Degree in Ag-related field

·         Farm fiscal and budgetary experience using appropriate computer software

·         Hands-on experience in food production under arid or desert environments

·         Experience in compost operations and recycling, sequential planting and harvest, water efficient irrigation practices, postharvest handling of food products and business management

·         Must be willing to live in northwest Arizona

·         Experience in start-up operations a plus

SKILLS:

·         Outstanding start-up skills and self-motivation

·         Extremely well organized and multi-functional

·         Strong business acumen and computer skills

·         Strong Interpersonal skills that further the interests of the organization

·         Strong communication skills, both written and oral. Ability to communicate at all levels

·         Strong business knowledge with the ability to support and achieve the financial objectives of the organization

·         Self-Starter with ability to develop goals and initiatives and deliver on measured targets of performance

Resume and cover letter should be emailed to: recruiting@harmonyhomes.com

I can help with inquiries. Extremehort@aol.com

New Bee Group Forming in Las Vegas

Become A Founding Member of a New Bee Club!

Anyone can join!

All ages welcome!

If you want to learn about our pollinator friends, or want to have a more abundant garden, or you want to become a beekeeper this is the club for you!

When: Sat. Feb. 4th, 2012

11am-12noon

Where: RISE Resource Center (Housed in the Advent Church)

3460 N. Rancho (Between Gowen & Cheyenne) Las Vegas,NV

What to bring: Yourself and a friend, a sense of adventure and a "Bee Friendly" attitude

Contact Rita at pillbow@gmail.com

Tom Spellman to Speak at Orchard 2 PM Thursday Feb 16 2012

Tom Spellman from Dave Wilson Nursery

If you are interested in fruit trees and hearing from true experts on the subject I would invite you to come out to the UNCE Orchard on Thursday afternoon at 2PM on February 16 to hear Tom Spellman from Dave Wilson Nursery. He will tour the orchard and talk about new fruit tree introductions from Zaiger Genetics. There is no fee. This only happens once a year and the first time I have offered this opportunity to the public.
Tom is a true expert on citrus as well.

How Much Asparagus Should I Plant?

Asparagus spear just starting to become
overmature for best quality

Q. I'm gardening in raised beds that are 4' x 8'. I'm not sure how much asparagus to plant. My wife and are I the only ones who would eat it and I'm guessing we would harvest 1x per week during the period they are harvestable. How much of my garden would need to be dedicated for that production level?

A. If asparagus is planted correctly it should start producing in February and you will stop picking about eight weeks later. When asparagus is in production and when it is warm outside you will picking as frequently as every other day to stay ahead of it. If you don't, much of it will be unusable. There is no such thing as picking weekly with asparagus once it is in production.

            It does freeze well, it makes great soup and they can be grilled nicely. I would say half-dozen crowns should be plenty for you and your wife. My asparagus class will be offered in March at Plant World and through Eventbrite.com.

Replanting In Same Hole for Fruit Trees Usually Not a Problem if Borers are the Reason

Q. I removed a diseased (clarified by saying the only problem was borers) peach fruit tree.  How soon can I plant another peach tree in the same hole?

A. If this is from borers, then you can plant immediately. Not a problem with borers and replanting. The entire lifecycle of the borers in our fruit trees are in the aboveground portion of the trees, not the roots or soil.

            There is a problem potentially with something called replant disease but it is minor in this case and should be not a problem for you. Remove as much of the root system as possible before planting.

Removing White Salt Deposits on Walls With Acid

Q. Our backyard block wall has some white stains on it. These appear where the sprinkler water hits the wall and I want to remove them.  I have read on-line to use things like diluted muriatic acid, but I don't want to kill the plants my wife has throughout her garden.  How can I clean the stains, and can I treat the walls to protect from more stains forming

Salt deposit on slumpstone wall when plants are being
irrigated by bubblers. Salt in the water is carried
up the wall where it evaporates, leaving behind the salts.
The other side of the wall does not have sprinklers
hitting it either.

A. These are salts remaining from either those sprinklers or water from the soil wicking up the wall. Our soils contain quite a bit of salt as well as our water. Water coming from Lake Mead carries about 1 ton of salts for every 326,000 gallons. It sounds fairly dilute but it is not.

             Our soils vary much more in salt and can be removed by leaching. The salt in the water of course is consistent. The combination of the two can mean some pretty high salt levels. Salt dissolves readily in water and when the water evaporates from the wall, it leaves the salt behind. These are probably the salt deposits you're seeing on the wall. Even drip irrigation can cause problems like this since the water can wick through and into porous surfaces.

            You don't have to use muriatic acid but you can use and acid, even vinegar to help remove it. The major concern with plants is having the acid fall on foliage. This will damage the plant. Of course the best way to prevent it is to not use overhead irrigation.

            In the case of drip irrigation, put the emitters on the opposite side of the plant from the wall, not next to the wall. Perhaps there is a treatment to the wall that could prevent this from happening. I don't know of any.

Special Deal on Fruit Trees on My Twitter Causes Frustration - For Me!

Q. Your twitter feed mentioned a good deal on peach trees which we are going to now purchase. Which two peach trees to get for a 10 x 10 space? I'd like to keep the harvest staggered so we can enjoy the fruit longer. I also have a five-gallon Bonanza dwarf peach in a whiskey barrel that I started last October.

https://twitter.com/ or go to my home page and follow my Twitter there.

Stark Saturn peach with some bird damage. For some
reason birds LOVE this particular fruit.
Problem: SO DO WE!

A. This was a special deal on ten fruit trees for $199 plus $35 shipping on Groworganic.com. On the peaches that they had available, I would recommend that you look at Red Haven (yellow acidic), Babcock (white subacid) or Stark’s Saturn (donut, white, subacid, but birds like it alot). For an earlier peach, mid July or so, and Indian Free (late august, beautiful flesh turning nearly blood red and subacid) or O’Henry (early august, yellow, favorite at roadside stands and farmers markets) for a later peach.

            It is hard to recommend just one or two peaches since they can be so different from each other. There is not really a June peach in the group that I know well enough to recommend.

When to Transplant Fruit Trees?

Q. With this unusually mild LV winter, when is the best time to transplant dwarf grapefruit trees?

A. By transplant I take it to mean you are moving a grapefruit from one location to another location. Planting or transplanting can be done now. You will have more success if the tree has not been in the ground more than three years. You will have even more success if the tree has been watered by drip irrigation in a fairly small basin or area next to the tree. You will have even more success if the tree was root pruned last fall around mid to late September.

Roots of M111 on 12 yo Anna apple. We remove fruit
trees from the orchard as we learn about them and
then move on to those varieties we have not explored.
Root systems can get large quickly and make it no longer
feasible to relocate older fruit trees to new areas after
about three years in the ground

            Root pruning just means you went around the entire tree with a shovel and severed the roots in the approximate location where you are planning to dig and transport it. Given all that, prepare your hole for planting first before you move the tree. Dig deep enough to accommodate the root ball but not much deeper.

            It is more important to dig it wide than it is to dig it deep. Get your soil amended and add some phosphorus to the soil. Move your tree as quickly as possible to its new location and try to orient it in a similar orientation, north to south, as it was in the old location.

            Backfill around the tree. During planting, run a hose in the hole at the same time you backfill to remove air pockets. Drive a stake next to the tree and into the bottom of the hole into solid ground. This stake will immobilize the roots if tied to the tree tightly.

            I usually use rebar pounded into the soil next to the tree after it has been planted. I wrap the tree and rebar together with green nursery tape to immobilize roots. This leaves the top to move in the wind.

            The trees should be planted the same depth as it was when it was removed from the soil. No deeper and no shallower. If you have rabbits, protect it with one inch chicken wire after planting. Mulch the soil around the tree with wood mulch keeping the mulch away from the trunk a foot. After one season of growth, remove the stake.

Apples Planted As A Hedgerow May Need Special Rootstock

Q. I planted ten bareroot trees I picked up at the orchard yesterday. I followed the directions from your Blog and everything went really well. I cut them all off at approximately knee height but when I got to the apple, I wasn't quite sure what to do.  Should I cut off any side branches? Leave desirable ones? Cut them partially back? Or just leave them alone? I am planting my trees in hedgerows 10' apart with 4' between trees.

A. In hedgerows make sure the trees are on very dwarfing rootstocks. M111 rootstock is probably not aggressive enough for planting that close. You could do them maybe six feet apart but four is really close. 

Birdseye view of young apple tree scaffold limb development

            If any of the branches can be bent down and they touch the ground they should be removed to the trunk. The lowest branches are probably going to be somewhere around 18 inches to 2 feet off of the ground.

            On apples look for a whorl of branches, a minimum of four and probably a maximum of six, to leave attached to the trunk. These will be your scaffold limbs which are limbs that support other limbs which bear the fruit.

            Otherwise, if this is to be a hedgerow, you can wire trellis the limbs to support them so they don't touch the ground and you could keep limbs as close to a foot off of the ground if you wanted to.

            If you are not sure what to do even after reading this just remove the ones that you know are too close to the ground and leave the rest, come to the orchard so we can talk, and address the problem next year.

You Can Grow SOME Berries in the Mojave Desert

Womack blackberry grown at the orchard

Q. Have you had any luck with berries? I have a friend that says she does blackberries successfully.

A. Some blackberries will do just fine here and others do not. Two blackberries which I have found to work well here are Rosborough and Womack, both of which you probably have to purchase online. They come from the Texas A and M breeding program. One that did not do well from that breeding program is Brazos.

Dorman Red raspberry grown at the orchard

            Generally speaking, I would not recommend most of the blackberries with native American names such as Apache, Navaho, Arapaho, etc. which came, I believe, out of the Arkansas breeding programs. Historically they have not done well here according to locals who have tried them so I did not bother trying them.

Strawberries at the orchard

            Raspberries have not done well over time generally speaking. I did try a Florida variety which had a lower chilling requirement and it failed here. I have heard some reports from locals where they had some success with raspberries but they either did not remember the name or had them in for only one or two years. Others have generally reported failures with raspberries.

            Strawberries will do well with everbearing types probably doing better than the main crop varieties. You will have some iron chlorosis problems, yellowing, that will need to be addressed. I have liked them when they were growing under about 30 to 40% shade here.

            With all of these you MUST prepare the soil adequately prior to planting.

Lemon Can Get By On Few Hours of Sun During Winter But Not Other Times of Year

Q. I have a Meyers lemon that is currently potted.  Now that I have lived through a winter here I have paid better attention to my sun. There are two spots along the back wall that get maybe 3-4 hours of direct sunlight at the shortest time of year.  Do you think it would survive being planted against a warm cinder block wall with only that much sun? 

Gloria Caruso's immature
Eureka lemon in Las Vegas

A. Meyer lemon will freeze back in our harshest microclimates in the Valley. On the other hand some of the more tender citrus, such as the limes, can handle our winters just fine if they are placed in the right microclimate.

The number of hours of sunlight in the winter is probably not as important as the number of hours for the rest of the year. Certainly four hours of sunlight is far too short for nearly all fruit producing and flowering plants if this light is during the spring, summer and fall months. But if this plant receives eight or more hours during these non winter months, when temperatures are at least warm, it might do just fine.

To protect from freezing temperatures in the winter it is best that it's placed near a very warm winter wall with very little exposure to wind. Some people wrap or drape them with materials and other use heat sources such as Christmas tree lights along with draping.

Can't Find a 1-2-2 Fertilizer for Fruit Trees

Q. I was looking for the 1-2-2 ratio fertilizer that you recommended for fruit trees.  Both nurseries I looked at do not have fertilizers with that ratio.  The fruit tree fertilizer that they carry has a ratio of 4-2-1.  Any suggestions where I can get the 1-2-2 ratio fertilizer?

A. What I have been telling people is to make their own. You just need sources of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. If you are not concerned about organic sources of fertilizer, then pick up some straight nitrogen, straight phosphorus and straight potassium and mix your own.

You can vary the amount of nitrogen or phosphorus simply by adding more or less of each product to a mixture you create. You can blend them together if you want but if they are different sized particles they will tend to segregate and not remain mixed very well over time. I prefer to add them separately. 

You can do the same thing with organic fertilizers. An organic source of nitrogen would be blood meal, phosphorus would be from bone meal and potassium you could use muriate of potash. I found all of these locally in at least one nursery. Purely organic sources of potassium are hard to find.

Planting Zones for Las Vegas Nevada

USDA hardiness zones

Q. What do you say is our planting zone?  I got a Plant Smart Sensor for Christmas and it says we are a 7B which is way lower than I always read.  Just because a website says a tree or plant will be ok for a certain zone doesn't mean it is necessarily right?

A. I use both the USDA and Sunset’s planting zones for our area. Because we have various microclimates in landscapes I will normally include a couple of climate zones colder for very exposed microclimates and a couple of climate zones hotter for protected areas with lots of exposure to sun in the winter time and wind protection. Start with winter time lows reaching 10F and add zones that are just at freezing (32F) to cover our microclimates in backyards. Yes, they will vary that much.
USDA Hardiness Zones
http://www.usna.usda.gov/Hardzone/hzm-sw1.html

            I like Sunset’s zones but find them a little bit too narrow at times and too restrictive. That is the reason Sunset went ahead in developing their own which they did a fabulous job doing. On the other hand, the USDA zones are too broad. Very little in this world is perfect so I use these fudge factors I mentioned to “fudge in” the microclimates.

Mojave Desert Las Vegas and Arizona
Mojave Desert Las Vegas and California

            Frequently, the selection of a plant and whether it will work or not, depends on several things: the microclimate, where you plant it in the yard, how you modify the soil and irrigate it.

Recommended Shade Trees for Southern Nevada

Q. Could you recommend some trees to replace a tree that I think is dying?  I don't like desert plants for the most part, especially desert looking trees.  So if there is something that is nice and full, that grows fairly fast and that does well here I would be interested to hear some of your recommendations.

 

A. I do not give recommendations regarding specific plant materials. The list of plants can be long and tedious. You and I could go back and forth a dozen times and still not find the tree that suits you. The only person who can do this is you.

            If you narrow your search down to five plants, then I can help you or at least give you characteristics of those plants and how they grow here to help you make the right decision. Sorry if you were looking to shorten your selection time down to a few but plant selection can and should be a very personal thing if you are serious about your landscape.

 Some places you can try for some non desert plant selections include
http://www.monrovia.com/plant-catalog/ Monrovia searchable plant database
http://www.hineshort.com/Gardener/GardenerHome.aspx Hines Nursery database
http://davesgarden.com/ Daves Garden searchable plant database
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/picturepages/ Texas A and M's database
http://hortiplex.gardenweb.com/plants/#hortiplex Hortiplex database
http://www.amwua.org/plants_index.html AMWUA's database for desert landscaping
http://www.horticopia.com/ Horticopia can be fee based
http://plantfinder.sunset.com/sunset/plant-home.jsp Sunset Magazines Plant Finder

 

Sap From Plums Not Always Due to Borers Dig to Find Out

Not the readers pic but this is sap oozing from a day old
cut plum limb at the orchard just to show you how much
they can bleed

Q. I have three red plums in my front yard and I attached pictures of them.  These trees were planted in 2003.  One plum has sap oozing out of the tree in 5 to 6 spots on the south facing side of the tree.  I cannot find any holes in the tree where the sap is oozing out.  The other two trees do not have this condition.  I put down systemic insecticides annually and I have sprayed the trunk of this tree every week with Bayer’s Advanced Insect Spray.  I noticed the sap started oozing late this summer.

more sap oozing from trunk from reader

A. Plums can be a fairly sappy tree and this may or may not mean you have borer problems. Sometimes stress in plum trees can cause oozing sap. However, to find out, you will have to take a sharp, sanitized knife and remove bark and dead wood below the sap. You should do this as soon as you see it next time.

            Your picture number three does look like loose bark caused by boring insects. Ultimately boring insects are attracted to trees which are weak or have been weakened or in poor health. Try to leave as much canopy on the tree as possible so that this canopy shades limbs and the trunk as much as possible.

            Systemic insecticides for borer control must be used with a great deal of caution when applying them to fruit trees with the fruit intended for consumption even if the label says you can legally apply it this way.

Are you Into Food Storage and Buying Bulk?

From Elizabeth Kay at www.crazykranch.blogspot.com

k, guys, lots to say here, so here goes...

First - orders - our next REGULAR order is the fresh strawberries again in April.  From now until then is completely open, so I'm welcoming any ideas for items you need in your storage - it can be freeze-dried foods, freeze-dried meals, herbs/spices, grains, beans, etc., or we can look into bulk ordering for something bigger like a sun oven, pressure canners, wheat grinders, etc.  Or we can stock up on some medical supplies.  Really, you can throw anything out there that you're interested in, and I'll find out if it's worth it to do a bulk order with it or not.  

Meanwhile, I do still have some things from leftover orders so let me know if you are interested in any of the following:

Raw Honey from Wyoming - 1 gallon (around 12 pounds) - $30 each (I only have 2 left so hurry fast)

Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth - 50 pound bags - $50 each, 

                                                     5 gallon buckets - $23 each

                                                      or $2 a pound 

Metal Bung Wrenches for 55 gallon water barrels(will not break or warp from the heat) - $12 each

I Dare You to Eat It book - $8 each

Redmond Clay - 6 pounds (1 gallon bucket) - $50

and maybe some fresh free-range eggs from the farm while you're at it - and don't be surprised when they come in different shapes and colors - apparently that's what real eggs look like!  $3 a dozen.  :)

Also, zaycon foods is offering Alaskan salmon, cod, and white shrimp in bulk right now if you are interested -  https://secure.zayconfoods.com/refer/zf44690 

And food storage geek is doing an order for natural beef (by the cow), and for coconut oil(if you are interested in learning about the REAL benefits of coconut oil, let me know, and I'll do a post about it.  email me for more info on these orders...

I know I've been a bit sporadic regarding my blog, but I'm getting better - instead of having to look it up, you can sign up for updates, and that way it will be sent to your email whenever I update it.  My blog is www.crazykranch.blogspot.com.  

We've had some people ask us lately if we offer training for emergency preparedness/self-reliance representatives, and good news!  We do!  Let us know if you are having trouble getting started or need some ideas to get everyone thinking and excited instead of overwhelmed.  We'd be glad to help!

Is there any else I can do for you right now?  I will be starting a preparedness/reliance series on my blog soon, so stay tuned for this!  Hope everything is going well for everyone.  Hang in there, and remember - self reliance is the KEY to free agency...

Elizabeth Kay, Self-reliant Network

poohnda@hotmail.com

How to Prune Tri-Color Hydrangea

Q. I have a tri-colored hydrangea bush in a pot in the front of my house.  When is the right time to cut it back and how do I do it?  After almost 20 years I finally got beautiful flowers on it last spring. After looking it up on the internet, I think I've been cutting it wrong.  I'd like your thoughts on this.

A. Wow. You are adventurous. Hydrangea is certainly not a desert plant. It does not like a lot of heat, low humidity or intense sunlight. It does like filtered light or early morning light and humidity. Just what people would tell you NOT to grow here. Go for it!

I didnt have a picture of this tricolor hydrangea
 so I "borrowed" it online from
http://www.planfor.fr/buy,hydrangea-tricolor,9117,349,list,EN,349
so I hope they don't mind

            If you have evaporating water somewhere with no wind it should like the spot if it's not too sunny. It will also not like wind. You have to have a balance in the amount of light. Not enough light and the plant will not bloom. Too much light and it might cause leaf scorching, dieback or death.

            It is also interesting because in many hydrangea the flower color may change depending on soil acidity. It is assumed it is because of the availability of aluminum. If there is ever a plant that will test your ability as a gardener, this should be tops on the list. It is probably a wise decision to plant it in a container.

            Tricolor is referring to the color of the leaves, not the flowers. The leaves are supposed to be a combination of green, light green and creamy color. There has been mislabeling of this plant in the past. Whenever you see a tender plant with leaf colors like this it is nearly always one that you must keep out of direct sunlight during the heat.

            My understanding is that Oak leaf and tricolor are pruned the same way. My understanding is that tricolor blooms on older wood, not this past year’s wood. This means that when you prune you will want to keep your older wood established and remove any older wood that is getting too old or that may be crossing or too close to other productive stems.

            The idea is to maintain older wood and selectively removing wood that is too old while constantly renewing the older wood. This will also mean you will have to remove excess new growth that makes the plant too dense and thick while, at the same time, keeping new growth that you want to preserve for future flowers. Not an easy task and certainly one that is difficult to explain. I hope this helps.

Lining Raised Bed Garden to Prevent Salt Deposits

Q. My wife and I are building a raised garden for vegetables.  It will be about 6' x 9' and just under 3' deep and will be made of landscape bricks. What type of liner would be best along the inner walls to avoid weeping of irrigation on the stones? What type of soil can I have delivered to our site that is best for this purpose?

Raised vegetable and herb beds at The Orchard
No walls are used. The natural slop of the
bed is used to contain the raised bed.

A. Congratulations on your move toward vegetable gardening in raised beds. I think your best alternative for lining your raised bed would be to use rubberized pond liners. They can be purchased in 5 foot wide strips and in various lengths. These should be puncture resistant.

            I would recommend getting a heavy-duty liner perhaps around 45 mil, not the 20 mil types. You can find sources on the Internet by searching for pond liners. It would be nice if it were also UV resistant.

            Make sure that you have drainage on the bottom of your raised bed so it should stick up slightly above your soil level and it should also be wider than your wall so that a few inches of it also lies on the ground. These should last at least 10 years or more.

            These liners will not add the toxicity to your soil that you might get by painting the inside walls with sealant. Make sure the strips overlap each other when the inside walls.

I am not recommending this company but here is an example of the kind of pond liner I am talking about.

            In my opinion there is not a decent soil “manufactured” in the valley that can be used for vegetable growing and see fabulous results from it the first year. These types of soils that will give you fabulous results can be developed over time, usually two to three years of growing plants and adding compost at planting time and water. This does not mean you will not be able to grow any vegetables, it just means you will see a gradual improvement in the quality of the vegetables over time combined with your efforts.

            Whatever you do, do not use reject sand or even add it to an existing soil. This would be a big risk if you use it and just might result in a soil that will not grow anything decently. If it were me, I would use an existing soil at the site, or if purchased, a soil that drains freely.

            Amend it with compost in a mixture of at least 50/50 of compost. Good compost is hard to find and it takes a lot of time and effort to make it. So it will not be cheap! When evaluating whether you have good compost or not, use all of your senses; look at it, smell it and feel it. It should be dark brown, smell like a forest floor with no off smells like ammonia or manure and a fine texture, not coarse.

            Even using the best compost will not give you fabulous vegetables or herbs the first year. It will take about three years for any desert soil, or one manufactured from desert soils, to reach its full potential for vegetable production. Be patient.

            You should screen the soil and remove rocks that are larger than a golf ball sized. If you are growing root crops and asparagus then you should remove the rocks even smaller than that to a depth of 12 inches. Amend it heavily with compost for the next 2 to 3 seasons at each planting and grow something the best you can. Even the first year your vegetables will be better than what you can get at the store but in two to three years you can have superb vegetables in our desert climate and desert soils.

When to Plant Fruit Trees

Q. When is a good time to plant fruit trees?

A. We normally plant fruit trees starting at the end of January and through February if they are bareroot. Bareroot are plants that are bought and planted without any soil around the roots. The roots must be well protected from drying out during shipment, while being held before planting and even as it is placed into the planting hole.

            Container fruit trees can be planted well into early summer. They can struggle a lot if planted during the summer heat so it is not a good idea to do it then but it can be done. The next best time to plant container plants or even bare root is in the fall. Actually it is better than the spring but harder to find plants that you want because availability is limited.

            Make sure your hole is dug prior to bringing the plant home and deep enough to accommodate the plant roots. It is more important to dig the hole wide than it is to dig it deep.