How late is too late for planting?

TheCrazy8

After a storm today, I have a downed tree that will be removed, hopefully by the end of the week. I want to replant something in that spot but is July too late? I'm thinking of bushes or a small ornamental tree w/ flowers around. I'm in KC, MO so zone 6-7, I think.

kastle

I would perhaps wait until more like fall before you do major planting.  You can certainly plant ornamentals now but you'll need to really stay on top of watering whereas if you wait more to early fall then the cooler and wetter weather will help you out there.

TheCrazy8

Thanks! That's great to know because I admittedly am not great about watering.

~NB~

Some plants are sensitive to the soil chemistry following stump grinding- it burns their roots. What are you thinking about putting there?

TheCrazy8

Hmm, that's interesting, NB. I'm not exactly sure what to do there. I want something substantial but not necessarily another tree...a large bush or maybe making a decent sized bed with an ornamental tree and perennials? I plan on researching ideas this week.

~NB~

Maples have fairly tolerant roots. You could plant a smaller type, like a Japanese Maple or a Hedge Maple (Acer campestre). You should also have good luck with Vitex, which is a tough plant and extremely attractive to pollinators.

Another lovely small ornamental tree that is very underused is Syringa reticulata, or the Ivory Silk Lilac tree. It survived a hellacious root pruning in my field tests this year- I removed almost half the root mass and the tree is doing fine, in spite of record-breaking heat. That's what I call a great plant. Other survivors were Holly and Elm, but those were large growing species (the Syringa will only grow 20-30').

Three small broadleaf evergreen trees also come to mind: Bayberry, Ligustrum, and Holly (any Chinese or Chinese hybrid holly); I rank these in order of survivability with Bayberry (or Wax Myrtle) being very good, Ligustrum better and Holly being best. Ligustrum and Holly are very reliable. It's really tough to kill Chinese Holly.

Vitex and Ligustrum are usually classified as shrubs, but they grow into very large shrubs and can be pruned hard to make them look like a small tree.

curlydoglover

~NB~:

Another lovely small ornamental tree that is very underused is Syringa reticulata, or the Ivory Silk Lilac tree.

We have one of these and it's LOVELY.

TheCrazy8

~NB~:

Maples have fairly tolerant roots. You could plant a smaller type, like a Japanese Maple or a Hedge Maple (Acer campestre). You should also have good luck with Vitex, which is a tough plant and extremely attractive to pollinators.

Japanese Maple was one I'm considering.  I love trees that are vibrant in the fall!

~NB~:

Another lovely small ornamental tree that is very underused is Syringa reticulata, or the Ivory Silk Lilac tree. It survived a hellacious root pruning in my field tests this year- I removed almost half the root mass and the tree is doing fine, in spite of record-breaking heat. That's what I call a great plant. Other survivors were Holly and Elm, but those were large growing species (the Syringa will only grow 20-30').

That sounds like my kind of tree, lol!  The pictures look pretty, too.

Also, I'm now thinking about River Birch or Blue Beech (so much for doing something smaller than a tree, I guess?).  I LOVE River Birch but don't know much about the Blue Beech.

Also, you mentioned problems sometimes following root grinding.  Is there somewhere I can read more about that?

~NB~

Carpinus (Blue Beech) is a great tree. It's tough enough to be used extensively as a street tree where I live, and can take heavy pruning/pleaching. They don't get too big- it will never top 40' which is fine for most residential landscapes. I've considered getting one myself, but I haven't ever done any root surgery on Carpinus.

Fresh stump chips can cause a rapid and significant decrease in soil pH, which can burn some sensitive plants (other plants like it). They also bind up Nitrogen during the decomposition process, so you may have to do some compensatory fertilization. Let me see if I can locate some research for you pertaining to wood chip and stump removal effects on soil chemistry.

Dr. Coder has some advice on this pdf, but you have to look for it (decay/degradation/future site use):

http://www.urbanforestrysouth.org/resources/library/Citation.2004-05-28.0701/file_name

Not everything here is relevant, but you may want to access:

http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a794282934

http://www.treesearch.fs.fed.us/pubs/30457

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6T6X-4SW85D3-2&_user=10&_coverDate=08%2F10%2F2008&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_searchStrId=1398963498&_rerunOrigin=google&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=35f61f7843f5a6797e4f2dc625ab238b

 http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/homestead/2004-November/002126.html

I'm sure you'll find even more if you have some spare Googling time.

Good luck!