So it turns out that someone was quite taken with the idea of more than just one
So impressed in fact that he decided to surprise me with a few more delicious fruit trees just before Christmas. We got to work straight away, with the forecast for a week of rain ahead there was no better time to get planting. The ground was already nice and wet from the previous weeks rain, it was easy to dig and a perfect environment for these new trees to spread their roots... after planting we did our rain dance and the sky's opened....it rained, it poured it rained some more and it is still raining...and this is where it all went wrong...My new trees are totally waterlogged and drowning.....
We are now just crossing our fingers and hoping that the rain will stop and the ground will dry up a little...
We thought we were quite clever directing all our washing water down the slope to where our new Orchard would be but unfortunately this is what has caused the biggest problem....
The ground was saturated before it even started raining....
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| Pear |
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| Peach |
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| Peachycot |
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| Nectarine (before) |
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| Nectarine (1 week after) |
Hoping they survive now, I would like to be putting my own stone fruit on the table one Christmas soon...
Oh dear! I think you need to get them out of those holes. Are you planting into clay? If so, it looks like nothing is draining away. Dig them up again and plant them into large pots, with partial sun, until they dry out. Also, give them a feed of Seasol - it helps stressed plants. I would hate to see all those trees die. Before replanting, check the soil type at the bottom of the holes. If there is a lot of clay, you may have to ass some sane and gravel. I hope you can save most of them. Good luck.
ReplyDeleteThank you Rhonda, I thought about digging them up again and I might get onto this ASAP as I hear there is still more rain to come...It's quite devastating watching them wilt away so quickly...
ReplyDeleteOh no you poor thing, I'd be so so sad. Lol, but am so so used to things I plant up and dying. I dig things up and replant them all the time, but sometimes if things die I just give up on them and plant something else. I hope you manage to save some of these, I am very envious of the pear :)
ReplyDeleteI woke up thinking of your trees last night. I forgot to add to wash add the soil off the roots before you replant them into pots. You need to get some oxygen to the roots and it the set soil sticks, they won't get it. Thank about cutting them back a little bit too - just some of the side branches and the top of the main branch.
ReplyDeleteI just LOLed when I read "ass some sane" - I hope you understood that meant 'add some sand'. I'm getting used to a new keyboard and often don't check what I write.
Oh, and NO fertiliser! Absolutely none.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your advice Rhonda, my mum has also told me to cut them back a little too. But she also told me to always keep the soil around the roots! I may take your advice over my mothers on this one, it makes more sense.
ReplyDeleteI have already dug out 3 of the worst of them and put them into some pots, they actually don't seem too bad, stems all healthy enough, just lost most of thier leaves at this stage. How long do you think it will take before they recover? (I am being very optimistic!)
I know what you mean Ali, I am always transplanting when I shouldn't be. I am being very optomistic about my trees, hoping it will be a good start to the New Year...Surprisingly my pear is the healthyest of all, if it does survive I don't really know how it will go in our climate anyway...fingers crossed and lessons learned I guess...
ReplyDeleteI don't know, maybe a month before you see new growth. If the stems are healthy, that's an excellent sign, the leaves will grow back. It will give you time to check out the soil and amend it. Fruit trees are a huge investment in the future so preparation and soil adjustment pay off big time later on.
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