SEATTLE — Ciscoe Morris has a problem that’s not really a problem for him.
"I've been away and while I was gone one of my plants died! You probably think I'm really sad but I'm really happy! I've got room for a new plant, oh la la!”
And that new plant is a tree — because fall is the perfect time to plant a tree. Cooler nights, more rain, and good prices as nurseries sell off summer stock are among the reasons you should wait until fall to adopt a new tree. Ciscoe showed off a red leafed crepe myrtle he recently picked up.
“Check out this cool tree I got for 30 to 40 percent off," Ciscoe said. "It's called Center Stage so it stays red like this and it has beautiful red flowers and it stays small. Biggest mistake people make is they plant a little tree that looks so pretty in a nursery and it ends up 40 feet tall. This is only gonna get 12 feet tall. I hope.”
The only catch about picking up a bargain tree is that it can be rootbound from sitting in a pot all summer long, so Ciscoe recommends breaking up the roots prior to planting. He uses his Felco pruners to get the job done, and he’s merciless.
“Don't be dainty about this,” he said.
Take into consideration whether your tree prefers sun or shade, then dig your hole at least twice as wide as the rootball is. You don’t want to go too deep, but wide is the key.
“Now here's something really important, we want these roots to keep growing as long into the season as we can get, so I'm gonna put a little organic fertilizer in there, probably about a cup," Ciscoe said. "And use organic so you don’t burn your plant.”
Make sure you’re not planting the tree too deep, the top of the soil surface in the pot should be flush with the spot you’re planting the tree.
“And now’s the most important job of all, make sure the pretty side is sticking out ya know, I think that looks pretty good right here,” he said, turning the tree before backfilling the soil.
“Even if it was raining out, you have to water it in," Ciscoe said. "Because not only are you making sure there's adequate moisture for this plant, but you're also making sure there are no air pockets right down around the roots.”
He emphasized that you should not under-do the watering after planting — he put two gallons on his new crape myrtle. He added that newly planted trees should get well watered every other day after planting, until it starts raining here.
"Now, we have got one little happy Center Stage crape myrtle that's gonna be a real prize plant in my garden for years to come!” Ciscoe declared.
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