Planting Instructions

Tree & Shrub Planting Instructions

We hope you find these instructions helpful during the planting of your trees and shrubs. For years we have offered helpful advice to our customers to ensure their planted trees & shrubs thrive and perform as expected.

Follow the below guidelines and don’t hesitate to contact any of the Evergreen representatives if you have any questions at all.

Helpful Visual Diagram

Dig a hole twice the width and just as deep as the original root ball.
Remove ½ of the soil existing leaving the best quality half in the original hole prepared.
Mix in an equal amount of planting soil mix into the hole dug and mix evenly with the loosened soil left in the hole for a uniform 50/50 blend.
We suggest using Daddy Pete’s composted cow manure, but other conditioners can be used such as Sphagnum Peat Moss, topsoil or other well drained organic soil types.
For container plants, remove from container and lightly score “or roughen up” the outer root system with a sharp knife.
Place enough soil back in the hole and pack so that the crown “top” of the root ball is slightly higher than original soil level. This is important.
If the plant is balled and burlapped, remove any string that is wrapped around the trunk. Natural burlap can be left around the root ball, but loosen any wrapped content that is around the trunk. If burlap is synthetic, remove totally, but be cautious not to heavily disturb or loosen the root ball. Do this only once the hole is prepared & can be positioned directly in the hole once unwrapped. Again, when positioning in the hole, place so that the top of the root ball is slightly above ground level.
Pack back the prepared soil mixture around the sides of the root ball tamping in carefully with feet to pack and stabilize plant’s root ball.
Do not add soil mixture on top of the original root ball. This is crucial.
Thoroughly water and settle in planted root ball area.
Once planted and after excess water has settled and drained, apply Fertilome Root Stimulator solution to ease transplant shock and promote root growth. We suggest repeating these applications 2-3 times every other week.
Mulch surface of planted area with 3” of Evergreen Pine Bark Mulch, Hardwood Mulch, or other types of quality mulch. Evergreen highly suggest a quality Pine Bark Mulch.
Water thoroughly 2 times each week during the growing season from April thru October (slight variations can be made during wet or dry periods). Be sure to water plants under eaves and trees even during wet periods.
Thereafter, apply one of the Fertilome granular fertilizer types once in March and May, and then repeated in fall “September”. These granular formulations should be applied evenly beneath the plant on the surface of the mulch. Watering in afterwards is not required, but will initiate the fertilizer to begin working right away.
We also suggest applying Fertilome Winterizer fertilizer in late fall “November” to toughen up trees and shrub for the winter while not promoting foliage growth during the winter months. Increased hardiness and root development is provided by this application.