Planting Advice

Planting Advice for Our Outdoor Products 

Dig a hole. Hole should be twice the width of the root system but only slightly deeper than the roots. Loosen soil in bottom of hole.

Prepare Plant or Tree. If bareroot, spread roots if necessary. If potted, remove container and carefully spread the roots outward if they are tightly bound. Trim extra long or broken roots.

Replant using original soil. Add amendments if recommended. Do not plant too deeply. If planting a grafted tree, the graft union should be approximately one inch above the soil line. If the graft union is much higher than the roots, plant approximately six inches above the roots. If planting a seedling or any other plant, plant so that the soil line matches the original soil line on the trunk.

NEVER put anything like fertilizer or manure in the hole. This could burn the roots. You may put compost on top of the hole after planting.

Compress soil firmly around root system while adding water to eliminate all air pockets. Make a wide, shallow basin around the tree to retain water. If planting a dormant bareroot tree or plant, do not water again until leafing beings. Too much water during the dormant stage can reduce root development and even damage the tree. 

If you are not ready to plant immediately dormant trees and plants can be stored in a cool place (3 to 6 degrees Celsius) for several weeks but the roots must be kept damp and must not freeze.

Preparing for Winter

Before the first snow there are two important (yet simple) things you must do.

1. Protect the graft by either creating a mound of earth, mulch or stones around the base of the tree so that the graft is buried. The graft can be uncovered once the weather warms up in the spring. We recommend protecting the graft for at least a couple of seasons.

2. Protect against rodents by either using a piece of foam plumbing insulation (which will also protect your graft) or a mouse guard which you can either purchase or make yourself from a piece of chicken wire.

Planting Distances

These planting distances reflect how far apart a tree or plant should be planted from another object (for example: from another tree or plant, fence, side of a building etc.) to ensure that there is enough room for growth and most importantly enough room to pick! These distances are minimums and should be used only as guidelines. Please note that if your intention is to create a hedge you will have to reduce the suggested planting distances. If you are planting multiple rows make sure to leave at least 4.5 meters (15 feet) between the rows to allow for a tractor to pass through. 

Dwarf trees: 3 meters (10 feet)

Semi dwarf trees: 3.5 meters (12 feet)

Standard trees: 4.5 meters (15 feet)

Trees per Acre

To use this chart, First use the spacing suggested for the tree, plants or vine as one measure and the spacing needed between rows as the second. This will give you the quantity of trees, plants or vines suggested for one acre. 

For example: the suggested spacing for an Asian pear tree is 12 feet between trees and more than likely you will need space to drive a tractor or truck between each row. That space should be 15 feet. That being said you would find 12ft and 15ft which indicates that 242 trees would be need for one acre.

How to Care for Our Indoor Products

Did you know that you can grow fruit in our climate all year round? Tropical fruit bearing plants, especially citrus such as lemons and limes are remarkably easy to care for whether on a patio during the summer or on a sunny window sill indoors all year round. Follow these easy steps to successfully grow lemons, limes, oranges, pomegranates and so much more in your home!

Repotting

Once you have received your new tropical plant the first thing you will want to do is re-pot it. Your plant will continue to grow bigger and bigger if you allow it to do so by gradually increasing it’s pot size. It is important not to increase the pot size by more than 25% at a time. A pot that is too large may increase the chances that your plant develops root disease. 

Choosing your new container

There are many different options available when it comes to containers. It is very important to choose a pot that has good drainage holes as over saturation can lead to root disease. The indoor plants that we sell like their soil to dry out between watering. Here is a basic rule to consider when choosing a new pot: If you tend to OVER water choose an unglazed or terra cotta pot because it breathes and tends to dry out quickly.

If you tend to UNDER water choose a plastic pot because it will retain more moisture. We never recommend self water pots for our indoor plants because they tend to keep the soil too moist which will promote root disease.

Choosing soil

We recommend using pro mix for our indoor plants which is readily available at most garden centers or hardware stores. Make sure to leave at least a couple of centimeters (one inch) between the soil line and the top of the pot to prevent overflow when you water.

Watering

The indoor plants available at the Green Barn were selected because they are easy to care for. There is really only one surefire way to kill them and that is by over watering or what we like to refer to as “too much love”. Citrus plants are particularly susceptible to root disease. When the roots start to rot the plant will most likely die. The easiest way to prevent root disease is to only water your plant when the soil is visibly dry or if the soil is dry below the surface. To check if the soil is dry below the surface simply poke your finger in.  We cannot tell you how often you will need to water because there are too many factors that contribute to how quickly the soil of your plant dries out such as the material that your pot is made out of, type of soil used or the temperature of the environment that your plant is in. A plant in an unglazed terra cotta pot outside in the summer heat will need to be water much more frequently than a plant that is kept in a plastic pot indoors.  When it is time to water slowly add water until it begins to slightly trickle out of the drainage holes to ensure that you have completely saturated the root ball. Our indoor plants love humidity. To promote a humid environment simply mist the leaves of your plant with plain water from a spray bottle

Fertilizing

Container grown plants require food. We recommend organic concentrated liquid fertilizer that can be diluted with water and then applied with every watering.

Taking your plant outdoors

Your plant will love to move outdoors during the hot summer months. If you would like to take your plant outside you should do so gently. A plant that has lived most of the year indoors will not appreciate being put directly in the blazing sun! Gradually increase the amount of direct sunlight your plant receives each day over the course of about a week to allow your plant to gently transition into its new environment. When the weather begins to cool down you should also gradually transition your plant back indoors for the winter.