How
to plant healthy trees
PAT FEATHERSTONE, our 'Soil for Life' columnist, explains how
to plant the right trees for your bountiful 'foodscape'.
Creating
the framework for your edible landscape: planting the trees
YOU will have done the research to find trees that suit your particular
needs in terms of space, shade, attracting wildlife and producing
food for your family, and given thought to where you will place
them in the space that you have available. If you're starting
from scratch, in an empty landscape, you have carte blanche on
which to create your food garden. Don't be put off by this seemingly
daunting task. Re-sculpting an already established garden can
be just as much of a mission. Whichever way you have it, never
fear. Begin with the end in mind. Imagine stepping out of your
back door into a veritable Eden, taking a walk though a luxuriant,
bountiful "foodscape", plucking juicy berries, savouring the exquisite
flavour of sun-warmed tomatoes, gathering baskets of dark green
leaves and fragrant herbs for the salad bowl and sitting on a
garden bench absorbing the vibrancy of life. Put your own individual
mark on your piece of land. Create its face, its "foodscape",
to suit your own needs and desires - whatever they are.
Planting the trees
By the time you get to this point you will already have:
• Assessed your garden to check the soil type;
• Checked the garden location in terms of which way it faces
and how it is affected by sun and shade - this helps you plan
your design on paper, bearing in mind the colour, height and spread
of suitable plants;
• Marked out the shape of borders on the ground and identified
where you will place compost heaps, earthworm bins, a pond, chicken
coop, nursery and benches;
• Cleared rubbish and prepared and improved soil; and
• Placed your selected food trees in position to see the
overall effect of the framework that they create.
Now it's time to pick up a spade and start digging the holes for
the trees. The better you prepare, the more likely you are to
have strong, healthy life-giving trees. And, just remember that
the best time to plant them is at the beginning of the rainy season
- either autumn or spring. Not only will the rain boost growth,
but the dehydrating effect of the sun will not stress the newly-planted
trees. Smaller, or younger, trees are better able to survive the
shock of being transplanted. Large trees are not only expensive
to buy, but will have large root systems confined in small containers
and will therefore be root bound. They need far more water to
establish themselves.
Here's how to go about planting a tree:
• Start by digging a large square planting hole - at least
half a metre by half a metre by half a metre. The larger the better,
so, if you're up to it, try making it one metre cubed. Break up
the subsoil at the bottom of the hole and work in plenty of organic
matter - dry grass, straw, manure, partially decomposed compost.
If you have no objections to using animal products in your soil,
add a few generous handfuls of bone meal.
• Fill the hole by adding an eight-centimetre (four fingers)
layer of subsoil followed by a two-centimetre layer (one finger)
of compost (or well-rotted kraal manure, kitchen waste or dry
grass). Water these two layers well and continue adding layers
of subsoil and compost until it has all been replaced. Then add
the top soil, layering it with compost just as you did with the
subsoil. The surface of the filled hole will be slightly higher
than the surrounding ground. By adding organic matter and watering
each level in turn, a sponge effect is created that will retain
water below the surface so that plant roots are encouraged to
grow downwards, giving them greater strength. Surface watering
tends to make plant roots stay near the surface.
• Scoop the soil from the centre of the circle to the outside
to create a basin effect.
• Mulch the surface of the basin and plant seeds or seedlings
on the inside of the ridge, in circles. It is extremely important
to keep the beds well mulched as this prevents water loss by evaporation.
• Plant your young tree in the centre of this basin. Firm
it in well, water. Stake the tree with a simple post placed as
close to the trunk as possible and secure the tree to it using
a piece of nylon stocking or plastic so that it is held fairly
firmly but can still move a little with the wind. Evidence suggests
that movement of the trunk in the wind strengthens its base and
leads to a stronger root system. After all, that is what happens
in Nature. Avoid using things like wire because it has no "give"
and will cut into the trunk as the tree grows.
• The sponge effect is maintained planting a one metre piece
of plastic piping next to the tree, or a large plastic bottle
with small holes burnt into the bottom with a hot needle (or alternatively
a tin can with holes in the bottom) into which water can be poured
so that the water is sunk deeply into the soil.
• Last, but not least, mulch the surface of the hole to prevent
the evaporation of water.
Looking after trees
• Water the trees regularly - deep watering is essential
to encourage good root systems - until they are well-established.
• Give your tree a few handfuls of bone meal every spring
and a good layer of compost or manure around its base in autumn.
•Remove dead and diseased wood and prune away overcrowded
branches , or those that are growing towards the centre of the
tree. Also cut off any branches that grow up from the base.
• Established trees are well able to take care of themselves
in terms of water and nutrients. That's what they have deep root
systems for - searching for what they need in the depths of the
soil. Once the trees are in, your framework is established and
the rest will follow.
This article contains extracts from the book Grow to Live: a Simple
Guide to Growing Your Own Good, Clean Food. To win one of three
copies, sms SFL to 38020. The sms will cost R10, which goes towards
funding the Soil for Life Home Gardening Programme in 2010.
Soil
for Life is a Cape Town-based NGO that teaches people how to grow
their own food. For information about membership, workshops and
organic methods, phone Pat on (021) 794 4982. Also take a look
at www.soilforlife.co.za
