Ten planting mistakes that quietly kill trees
Most trees that die in their first decade were doomed on planting day. Here are the mistakes we see most, and what to do instead.
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The nursery notebook
Field notes on how trees actually work: growth, age, height, damage, recovery and the everyday mistakes that shorten their lives. Written from the ground, not from search results.
Why new leaves come out red
That bronze-red flush on spring oak and maple leaves is sunscreen, not stress. Here is what the pigment is doing and when to actually worry.
Next up
In the works
Five articles in progress, roughly in the order we expect to publish them. Ask for one to move up the list.
- Squirrels, voles, mice, rabbits and deer: how each damages young trees, and the sleeves, cages and pins that stop them
- Leaf and twig mulch beats wood chips: why the litter under a tree is worth more than a bag of chips
- Red oaks versus white oaks: which to plant where
- Transplanting young trees: timing, watering and protection
- Poor trees for urban homes, and the natives to plant instead