Water Plus AZ
Arizona Water Company has launched an Integrated Demand Management Program (IDMP) for Rimrock called Water Plus.
Here are the final steps for planting your new low-water-use plants! View our previous post for the first 4 steps!
5. Fill the hole with soil and press the soil down firmly to settle it. Adding water also helps settle the soil.
6. Remove the nursery stake and make sure the plant can stand on its own. If it cannot, stakes can be added to support the tree temporarily, but they need to be at least 2-3 feet away from the trunk of the tree or plant. See the diagram below. These stakes need to be checked monthly and removed as soon as the tree or plant can support itself. If a nursery stake is left on a tree, it can damage tree roots and stunt the growth.
7. Trim off any broken or dead branches of the plant, but otherwise, do not prune until about a year or 2 after planting.
8. If there isn’t an existing drip irrigation system, make an irrigation well around the plant, forming the well at the outer edge of the plant's canopy. Water each plant thoroughly, wetting the soil to the bottom of the root ball. How do you know if you have watered deep enough? After about an hour after watering, puncture the ground with a soil probe or a long screwdriver and see how deep it goes before it stops; that is how deep the water has gone!
9. Spread a thin layer (0.5-1 inch) of organic mulch around new plantings. Mulch helps retain moisture and reduces water evaporation, but too much mulch (2-3 inches) creates an anaerobic environment, which doesn’t allow air to get to the roots of the plant.
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There are 9 easy steps to installing low-water-use plants! Here are the first 4 - stay tuned for part 2 tomorrow!
1. When digging a hole for your plant, make sure it is 3-5 times wider than the container of the plant, but no deeper than the root ball. Making the hole wider helps break up the soil and encourages the plant’s roots to grow outward. Making the hole too deep will cause the plant to sink, and parts of the plant’s trunk will be buried that don't need to be in the ground. Fill the hole with water to get the surrounding soil moistened in preparation for planting!
Pro Tip: if you come across caliche, a type of calcified soil that is as hard as cement, do not be alarmed! There are ways to deal with it. It can be removed with power tools, or a chimney can be created through the caliche to allow water to soak in and permeate the surrounding soil. Caliche can be damaging to plants because roots or water cannot go through it, and the water after irrigation will stay stagnant, causing the roots to rot.
2. Before removing the plant from the nursery container, make sure to lay it on its side and tap the sides with a hammer or trowel to loosen the soil. Be careful to handle a plant by its root ball rather than the branches or foliage.
3. Look at the roots of the plant before putting it into the ground. If the roots are circling the container, score the root ball or loosen the roots to help the roots spread to the surrounding soil after being planted. What does scoring mean? It means taking a knife or scissors, puncturing the root ball somewhere near the top, and then pulling the knife or scissors down to slice the root ball from top to bottom.
4. Place the plant in the hole so that the top of the root ball is even with the surrounding soil or just a bit above it. Make sure the root flare, or the small area where the trunk of the plant begins to fan out to the roots, is visible. The trunk should not be buried at all, so some soil may need to be removed until the root flare is visible.
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Do not fertilize new plants. Mulch is helpful to bring in some nutrients and retain moisture, but fertilizing immediately can damage plants.
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