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Planting Bare Root Plants

© Mary Henry

Have you ever planted a bare root plant? It is the most economical way to buy large numbers of plants for ground covers, hedges, orchards, rows of shade trees or shrub borders. The lack of a ball or container at the roots allows cheaper shipping too. Bare rooting plants allows growers, especially here in the North, to store and ship them at times when the soil is frozen and lots of snow may be present in the growing fields. One of the country's largest wholesalers of nursery stock, Bailey's Nursery, is located in central Minnesota. They dig their products in fall after they have become dormant and store them in specially constructed warehouses that hold temperatures just above freezing and the humidity at 98%. The plants are shipped with moist material packed around the roots at planting time in your area.

Success with bare root plants depends almost entirely on how the plants have been cared for at all stages, including handling by the nursery you bought them from, the shipping, and your responsibilities at your end. It is much like shipping Flipper the dolphin. He was out of his element and had to have special care from when he was lifted out of the water until he splashed back into his new home.

Bare root plants should only be available locally in early spring during the period between the thawing of the ground and leaf-out time in the area. This is the narrow window of opportunity for them to be successfully established. Many more plants are available by mail order from specialty nurseries that won't be available locally. Order early and specify when they should arrive. A nursery in another state can't be expected to know local conditions.

As soon as you get your plants, get them into the ground. If you can't plant immediately, you will need to keep them out of the sun, as cool as possible, and the roots constantly moist, not saturated. Out of cold storage, the vigor of bare root plants begins to drop quickly. The rate of this loss gets greater as the temperature goes up, so don't delay in getting them planted.

While you are digging the hole, soak the roots in a bucket of water to rehydrate them. Don't leave them in the water for longer than about an hour. You can add the recommended amount of a starter or transplant solution, but don't add fertilizer. Bare roots can easily be burned by fertilizer.

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