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Watering Rootmaker Trees
- Thread starter KSQ2
- Start date
catscratch
Well-Known Member
Root makers are tough to water! Multiple times a day, or soaking from the bottom up. The holes on the side dry the soil up much quicker than traditional pots.
yoderjac
Well-Known Member
Yes, dunking them is fine. I used to use large tubs to soak 3 gal RMs. I would not soak 18s.
Also, keep in mind, if you are using the right kind of chunky mix it should have lots of voids in it. When you first transplant, water should run through it like a sieve. As the roots continue branching they fill those voids making them harder to top water. When they become difficult to water and you need to dunk them, you are likely better off transplanting to the next larger container if possible.
One last caution. If you have any kind of disease with any of the trees, dunking them in the same tub of water can transmit the disease depending on what it is. I have not had that happen, but it can.
Since you said you just did the transplant, I would reconsider the mix you are using. I like to add pine bark nuggets to promix to make it even chunkier. They should not be hard to water when first transplanted.
KSQ2
Well-Known Member
I used the nuggets along with the promix.
yoderjac
Well-Known Member
Humm... I've never found them hard to water when first transplanted to 1 gals. Maybe I was using more nuggets.
KSQ2
Well-Known Member
I think it has more to do with peace of mind. Especially since I just got them in the pots and wanted to make sure all the roots got moisture.
yoderjac
Well-Known Member
My watering technique is to totally saturate them. For top watering, just keep adding water until it runs out of the lowest holes. I then don't water them again until they are dry. I water by weight. After transplanting, before watering, I pick up the 1 gal. That weight is the gas gauge on empty. After soaking them, I pick it up again. That weight is the gas gauge on full. I like to water at about 1/4 tank. If the leaves begin to droop you waited to long, water immediately. if they stand back up, they will be ok. Chestnuts don't like wet feet. The saturate and let dry out technique worked well for me.
I've only had issues watering potted trees, including the rootmakers, if the potting soil gets really dry. It seemed worse with generic Promix vs the Lambert LM-16 I'm using now. I like to try to make sure the mix is saturated when I start, as it helps keeping it damp.
KSQ2
Well-Known Member
Hey guys, another question for you. The chestnut and persimmon trees have done well up until now. They are beginning to suffer some now with the heat; I might have lost one of the chestnuts. Here’s my question, how often do I need to water them now? Remember, they are one year old bareroots I put in one gallon root makers this spring. Last year I killed some chestnuts I put in R18s watering them too much. So what is the happy medium? When it wasn’t so hot I was dunking them about once a week and that worked great.
yoderjac
Well-Known Member
I water by weight, not on a schedule.
KSQ2
Well-Known Member
Ok, at what weight is it time to water when it’s hot? The same weight or sooner? Obviously, what I was doing before is no longer working. I don’t think a lack of water is the only issue. But I don’t want to drown them either.
Edit to clarify, at what percentage of newly watered weight do you water them again? Half? Quarter? I have them in a spot that they are shaded from about 1pm on.
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yoderjac
Well-Known Member
I described this method in another post. I don't actually weigh anything. When you first fill the container with Promix, you pick it up and get a feel for the weight. That weight is "Empty" on you gas gauge. I then totally drench the container until water is running out of the lower holes. When the water stops running out, pick up the container and get a feel for the weight. Consider this weight "Full" on your gas gauge.
Based on those two relative weights, I let the trees dry out until the tank is about 1/4 full. I just do this be feel for the weight. It is not a precise thing. Chestnuts seem to do best when they are drenched and then allow to dry out. They don't like wet feet, so watering too frequently with less water may not let them dry out enough. The thing to watch for on the other side is the leaves drooping. If you see the leaves begin to droop, you waited a bit too long to water. Drench them immediately and they will be fine. It is best if they get drenched just before leaves show this sign of stress.
That method worked well for me. When I was growing them in a controlled indoor environment, I could check them every couple days. Once they get moved to my decks, I had to check them daily. Differences in heat, wind, growth rates and such can make a big difference in how much water they use.
One more note. The idea of using a chunky Pro-Mix type medium in root makers provides lots of voids for the lateral root branching to fill. As these voids are filled, the trees become more and more difficult to top water. You may need to saturate the top, wait for it to soak in, saturate again, and continue this until water comes of the bottom holes. The alternative to top watering is dunking them in a tub and allowing the water to soak in.
KSQ2
Well-Known Member
In the 1 gallons I’m dunking them, not sure what I’ll do with the 3 gallons next year. I think simply waited too long to water, it has been windy and hot the last 4 days or so. I’m going to begin dunking them more regularly and just see what happens. I’m using cold well water to dunk them as well, trying to get the soil temp to keep from getting too hot. I might need to cut back on the amount of sun they are getting too, during this hot spell.
catscratch
Well-Known Member
I've grown hundreds of Chinese Chestnuts from seed in Rootmakers. Most go to students who likely don't take care of them at all, but I've grown and planted many of them myself. Only been able to keep a couple alive, let alone growing. The persimmons ive planted are doing better than the chestnuts, but being just outside of their westerly range makes them a crapshoot.
KSQ2
Well-Known Member
We have 3 growing behind the house I grew from seed, but I didn’t know about rootmakers back then, so I just grew them way too long in 1 gallon pots. They were root bound like crazy, and I didn’t know anything about releasing the roots back then when planting. They’ve survived and are around 16’ tall now, but they don’t look great. I’m hoping these rootmaker trees do better. We’ll see I guess.
