A Trial Looking at 5 Ways to Prepare Beds for Tree and Shrub Planting - Which one is the best?
A few years back we started a trial to discover the best ways to prepare the ground for tree and shrub planting. We trialed five different methods and recorded the performance of each method looking at how long they took to implement and manage, how much they cost and how effective they are.
I'll start the post with why we prepare our ground in advance of planting then we will look at the goal of the trial, overview of the trial garden, overview of the trial itself and finally present the trial results.
Why we prepare our ground in advance of planting
When planting trees and shrubs into grassland or fields previously used for agriculture, I prefer to prepare the area at least 6 months ahead of planting - 12 months is even better. We often prepare the planting zones in early spring for late Autumn planting. I call this "advance planting pre…