what size mulch do you have..

i would go with about 1/2 potting media .. and half smallish wood chips ..

if you dont mind the cost.. go buy a bag of mini chunks ...

once mixed.. and potted ... water nearly comes out the bottom as fast as you pour it in the top ... and that is tree media ...

two years ought to be good enough ... perhaps just a LITTLE fert next year ... you know trees do not need all that much food ... its more about how fast you are washing it out the bottom .. than the trees need ... if you understand what i am saying ...

let trees NEARLY dry between waterings .... if kept in high shade.. maybe once a week or two ...

dont let the pots themselves get too hot ... in sun ...

i dont know what a 7 pot is .... how many gals??

now.. all that said.. why cant they be left in the ground???? it is soooo much easier ...

might be too late to be repotting again ... might be best left till fall ...

ken

Hey ken, thanks for the feedback.

I planted them in pots as they are so so tiny with tiny little root systems.

I do have a finely shredded mulch with alot of bark content. Should I mix that with the potting soil 50/50 and replant in the fall?

Based on the size of the little tiny tiny root system I'm not sure I could stablize the little plugs with a coarse soil.

The Acer triflorum plugs don't look so hot. The leaves are shriveled and have a copper tint to them. I wonder if the food in the soil is impacted them. Although everything else looks good.

i thought you dug these up.. what the 'plug' thing all about??? .. i dont see it in the facts ..

it really doesnt matter what mix you use... as long as water goes in the top and straight out the bottom

if you hoik a pot... of dry mix.. it weighs basically what the pot does ...

when you water it.. it can double.. triple.. quadruple in weight ... and that is the relative weight of the retained water ...

at best.. a tree mix should barely double ... cuz we want all the water shed ...

so try some of your mulch.. if not too stringy .... with some potting soil ... whatever works ...

perhaps the easiest.. might be to buy a bag of cactus mix.. as it has the water shedding ability were are looking for ...

so did you get plugs with your giant trees??? if so.. and then you might be able to repot.. its a whole nother world from ripping them out of the forest ... in other words.. its root structure is intact in the plug.. much more forgiving ...

how big is a 7???

i am sure some potting pros will come and be more specific.. my point is simply to get you thinking about the theory .... water in.. water out ... once you understand that.. you will be well on your way to understanding what the pros are trying/suggesting ..

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: i didnt read it.. but this might be interesting

I've been very careful with the water. In fact I only give them a quick sprinkle cause I know the root systems are so tiny.

Good point on the weight. I'll test that tonight.

Sorry, they were plugs/bare root upon arrival from a local source. They are now in pots. See a couple pics below.

Either now or in the fall I need to seperate these little guys.

They will go in 7 gal. pots. I don't want to deal with encircling roots. I just want to take it out of the pot, give it a little root tease and put it in the ground once it can fend itself from the wind or least have some caliper in which I can stake it with a bamboo stick. Right now they can hardly stand up (why I potted them low in the pot).

Acer truncatum looking quite nice...
{{gwi:365770}}

Acer triflorum not looking so nice...notice the copper tint in the leaves. Sorry the quality is bad.
{{gwi:365772}}

I've had experience with two Acer trifloium's. Both barely grew at all the first year, but much better the next. Also both had leaves that had color when expanding, only to turn much darker green after fully developed. FWIW, I would put them in root pruning or "air" pots, so that you don't get much in way of circling roots that will have to be cut later. Farmtek has them and other supplies you might be able to use.

Arktrees

so what are the ones in the ground in the first set of pix???

ken

They were in tubes. The trunks have about 1/2" caliper where the others I put in pots are 1/16" to 1/8" in caliper.

Hey, Whaas!
My trees are all planted in a mix of Fir bark, perlite, and turface or pumice (scoria).
You can make a nice 5-1-1 mix of bark, perlite, and potting soil.

Josh

Thanks guys...

Should I make the move now or just wait until fall?

Are we talking Acers only?

If so, this is the time of year (June) that I collect Trident Maple seedlings.
Simply plop the whole root-ball into a mix of bark, perlite, and grit (if you have it).
Then, next Spring before the buds begin to move, re-pot into a homogenous bark-based mix.

For bark, I buy bags of fine-grade "Orchid Bark" (which is Fir bark), but pine bark is great, too.

I also add a dash of Osmocote 4-month release formula.

Josh

I also have Chionanthus retusus, Maackia chinensis, Maackia amurensis, Halesia caroliniana, Cladrastis kentukea.

Josh, what does homogenous bark-based mix mean? Are you just saying all bark?

whaas, I am in SE WI also. I dunno where in SE WI you are, but I can point you in the direction of the materials for making 5-1-1 and gritty mixes should you choose to go that direction. I live in Mayville, but work in Milwaukee, so I've located all the ingredients in the Milwaukee area. Let me know if you plan to make those mixes, and I'll tell ya where to go.

Joe

Sounds like I should just go the 5-1-1 route to optimize these trees. I only have a couple of each species so I don't have alot of room for error!

If you can shoot me an email I'd appreciate it. I'm about 25 min southeast of you.

Or if its easier (maybe more beneficial for future newbies) you can post here too!

Hey, Whaas!
By "homogenous bark-based mix" I meant a single type of mix within the pot,
as opposed to the original soil around the root-ball, slipped into a pot of bark mix.

I second the 5-1-1, which I refer to as my "workhorse" around the yard.

Josh

Ok, in ragards to the ingredients for your 5-1-1 mix, and for reference, I'll include the gritty mix ingredients as well.

Pine bark fines: I found a place called "The Flower Source", located on Pilgrim Road, immediately south of Mequon Road, in Germantown. It comes in 2 cubic foot bags, and is labeled "Pine Bark Mulch", but is just what the doctor ordered. It's partially decomposed, and is the ideal size. You'll find it on a pallet located between the little road that leads to the place, and the parking area. You'll know what I am talking about when you get there. It is $4.99 per bag.

Perlite: I picked mine up at Stein Garden & Gifts, also in Germantown, on Hwy 175, just north of County Line Road. You can find it at any Stein's though, and get the big bag, it's cheaper over the long run. I payed somewhere around $15 for a huge bag, which will last you for years.

Lime: Can be found at most big box stores, but I got mine right at Stein's as well. I got a smaller bag, because you only need a tbsp per gallon of mix, so I figure this small bag could make hundreds of gallons worth. I payed about $3 for it.

Peat Moss: Easily found at any big box store, in a compressed bale, with a green & white bag. I've seen it at Home Depot, Menards, Walmart, Stein's, Lowe's, pretty much anywhere. I don't recall the cost, because I some in my shed.

Now, for the gritty mix ingredients.

Pine bark fines: See above.

Turface MVP: Reiner's, which is an athletic field material supplier. I went to the Elm Grove one, located at 13400 Watertown Plank Road. There is also one in Waukesha, at 2343 Pewaukee Road.

#2 Cherrystone grit: Found mine at Fleet Farm. Make sure to call ahead, because some of the city slicker locations don't have as much farm type stuff. This includes the Germantown location. I got mine at the Beaver Damn Fleet Farm, but depending where you are, just call your nearest one and ask for it.

Gypsum: Found mine at Steins, again in a smaller bag, for a few bucks. I believe you can get it at a lot of big box stores as well.

Additional supplies that you may be interested in.

Foliage Pro 9-3-6: The perfect fertilizer for these mixes, and others too. I couldn't find any in the area, so I ordered it from Amazon. However, I just recently found out that there is a hydroponics store called "Brew & Grow" in Brookfield that carries Dyna-gro products, which is who makes the Foliage Pro. I have not called to see if they have it.

Epsom Salts, which you should add to your water with the gritty mix: Got mine at Stein's.

That whould take care of everything you need. Make a note though, with the lime (and gypsum if you make gritty mix), there is some new lime product out there, made for lawns and such. Lots of big box stores carry it, and it has additives in it. Don't get this kind. The bag says "Fast acting lime, with AST". It has other things in it that you don't want, so avoid this stuff. Just get regular lime, which can be called agricultural lime, dolomitic lime, or garden lime. Do NOT get hydrated lime. Ok, I'm getting carpotunnel syndrom, so I'm wrapping this up. Happy hunting!

Joe

Awesome! The sources for the 5-1-1 mix are within 10 min of my work. I have to go to Steins over the lunch break anyhow!

I get the 5 parts pine bark, 1 part peat and 1 part perlite but where does the lime come in? How much do you use?

One Tablespoon of Lime per gallon of mix.

Josh

I like to mix by the gallon, which makes liming easy. Here's how I do it, to make mixing more uniform, and measuring easy. Get yourself a 1 gallon measuring pot of some sort, be it an icecream pail, or a simple 1 gallon tupperware measuring pot, which is what I use. I measure and pour into a 14 gallon rubbermain tote, in the following order:

1. 1 gallon pine bark, then sprinkle 1 tbsp lime evenly over it. Follow lime instructions for each liming.
2. 1 gallon pine bark, lime
3. 1 gallon peat moss, lime
4. 1 gallon pine bark, lime
5. 1 gallon perlite, lime
6. 1 gallon pine bark, lime
7. 1 gallon pine bark, lime

Then, I like to add a gallon or 2 or water, depending how damp the pine bark is, to cut down on the dust in your face. Mix it thoroughly, working the water into the mix. Do this outside, because the peat and perlite is dusty, and trust me, it doesn't feel too good to breathe it in.

Joe