[albert]

bidding on a tree planting job for a city ,they supply trees ,2.5 to 4.0 callber , one requirement is to remove the wire at the top surface of the basket and also to remove the bottom section under the ball , any comments ? and any suggestions how to remove the bottom section of the basket without damage to the ball ? thanks guys

[LabourofLove]

Originally posted by albert
bidding on a tree planting job for a city ,they supply trees ,2.5 to 4.0 callber , one requirement is to remove the wire at the top surface of the basket and also to remove the bottom section under the ball , any comments ? and any suggestions how to remove the bottom section of the basket without damage to the ball ? thanks guys

Bolt cutters - and be plenty glad that you're not working for one of the MANY municipalities that require the removal of the ENTIRE basket AND all of the burlap.

[Stonehenge]

Yup - we were using bolt cutters today, as a matter of fact.

[PSUscaper]

Is this becoming more and more common for people to do?

I'm assuming your doing it after it is in the hole? I would hate moving a root ball even a few feet without the basket with some of the stuff I get.

[Mark Oomkes]

Originally posted by PSUscaper
Is this becoming more and more common for people to do?

I'm assuming your doing it after it is in the hole? I would hate moving a root ball even a few feet without the basket with some of the stuff I get.

Ditto, because you have no way of knowing if the rootball is decent enough to hold together without the basket, since you're not supplying the trees.

I could see this as a money loser pretty easily.

As an aside, a couple years ago one of the local municipalities was asking for bids on tree installs with a list of types and sizes. Bids were all over the place. Can't remember exact numbers, but the low bid was something like $90\tree--installed. It gets better--guaranteed for 2 years. The rewholesale yard we use said they couldn't even get the trees for what these were installing them for.

[Lanelle]

Removing the 'ears' and the top ring of the basket is becoming more common because researchers are finding that the top portion of the basket restricts the roots from moving beyond the basket, thus girdling the tree.
The removal is done after the tree is in place and the backfill is started.

[LabourofLove]

Originally posted by PSUscaper
Is this becoming more and more common for people to do?

I'm assuming your doing it after it is in the hole? I would hate moving a root ball even a few feet without the basket with some of the stuff I get.

Yes, it would seem so. I just finished a very small job: consisted of digging out a large, dead hydrangea (tree form) and replacing it with a large, common (purple)lilac.

The ball we dug out was 24" D and had been in the ground (according to the client) for 8-10 years; declining noticeably each season until death in 2005.

The burlap was of the supposedly degradable sort, but none of it (even the ties around the trunk) had been removed - nor had the basket been removed. There were NO ROOTS penetrating the burlap or the ball (wire).

This would be the reason that more and more places are requiring the removal (or at least the partial removal) of both. This is ALSO the reason that so many of the public view all of US as "out for the quick dollar". They see one or more trees dying over a long period of time, and it isn't until these units are removed for replacement that they see the burlap and wire still on the rootball. They are plenty annoyed that they spent a LOT of money X # of years ago and now must do it again.

All of us can tell one another horror stories about improperly planted trees & shrubs. I have personally done multiple removals on a single property where the original installer planted over $250,000 in trees & shrubs in NON-BIODEGRADABLE BURLAP without untying or (in any other way) removing the burlap or wire. The tying around the trunks was visible from day one of the installation (said the client). He (the client) though it was supposed to be that way - after all, he had paid .....blah, blah, blah.....

Shortcuts like this, taken by a very famous (and equally very expensive) nursery give all of us a bad name. Yeah, yeah, blame it on the install crew, but somewhere up the food chain someone told 'em it wasn't necessary to remove the B&B materials.

[VoodooChile]

Here we go again!

I hope at least you can leave the nylon twine wrapped nice and tight around the trunk...

[TrickyDick]

I took a class a few years ago (a horticulture/ maintenance class in a design program) with a woman who had just had a bunch of plants put in at her own house. The contarctor had told her that it was good to keep the burlap tied around tree to help keep them straight in the wind. She asked if there was ever a time that you should leave the burlap/ twine tied around the trunk and the instructor said "is there ever a time you would leave someones hands squeezing YOUR neck?"

What does it add, two or three minutes on a big plant to untie it?

We always remove the top two thirds or so of the basket (with bolt cutters- use a long set so you can reach low into the hole) since we started seeing pictures of dead trees with major roots girdled a few years ago. Unless the trees are small enough to shift around by hand (2.5 inch yes, 4 inch is getting big) it would be a huge pain to get the bottom of the cage off. I guess there could be some benefit for the few trees that grow big tap roots but for most that is just a waste of time.

[site]

We were planting at the University of New Hampshire two years ago and they made us remove the entire basket. We cut the bottoms off before we put the tree in the hole- small though so the ball wouldn't fall apart too much. Next we put the ball in the hole and cut the basket with wire cutters. We had to yank some sections that were pinched under the ball. it took about 15 minutes extra per tree. This summer they re-did the road and removed all the trees. I bet whoever took them out wished they had baskets on.

[jwholden]

I'll add a ditto that removing as much of the basket and burlap is the way to go. I have seen too many instances of bad things happening as well (I posted some pictures on this site somewhere).

It sounds extreme to want the entire basket removed but I try to get atleast the top half of the basket out of there. Smaller B & B stuff like boxwood the entire piece of burlap comes off before the plant goes in the hole... assuming the ball is going to hold together.

[GLAN]

Seems we are all doing similar planting methods

Though I don't assume a root ball will hold together.....

B&B if we can cut and remove the top of the burlap we will......If we can't cut......we will untie and push the burlap down into the hole.

Baskets.........stopped removing them along time ago.....all we do is fold them down into the hole or cut around and remove as of the top.