Caring for all of your specimen plants, especially during their first season, is of vital importance.
It is during this time that your plants will undergo the most stress. The plants have to find the water table and where the nutrients are in your existing soil. It will also have to adjust to the amount of sunlight and wind it is now exposed too.
Overall, maintenance and watering are the key factors to the success of any specimen plant. Every garden is different and you will need to be aware of your ground conditions. Trees and shrubs should be watered well when first planted. You should then allow the ground to start to dry out before adding more water. Some ground conditions mean you will need to water every day, others it could be every 3-4 days. Work with your ground conditions as overwatering can be just as damaging as under watering.
When planting your specimen plants, we recommend adding a mycorrhizal fungus to the newly dug hole before planting your plant. This will help to establish the root system (see our planting guide for further information). About a month after planting, we would recommend adding a fertiliser to the ground. For this to be the most effective, you should apply the fertiliser around the root system – not on top of it. If the fertiliser is added around the root system this will encourage the roots to spread out to the fiser. This will create a stronger root system and therefore a healthier plant.
The first feed should be approximately 6” away from the roots, then 12” – 18” away and so on for the first year. We would recommend feeding every 3-4 weeks for the first growing season.
Our knowledgeable staff are always able to advise you on the correct maintenance of all specimen plants – please do not hesitate to ask or call in.
