Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Got the seeds. What now?

Possibly too much watering?

I'd try again. Maybe from a different source.

Fatih,

I do not know the humidity where you are trying to grow the elms but watering 3 times a day seems excessive. The soil needs to be kept moist only until the seeds germinate. I see in the pictures that your pots are large. They will require less watering than small little pots. Should be once a day or every other day or even longer. Stick your finger down into the soil. If you can reach damp soil, you do not need to water.

Good luck,

Bill D.

This watering issue is making me sick guys. Can we be a little more specific? I moved my oak into a cubic pot 6x6x6 inch dimensioned. Seedling is 3 inch tall but root is even longer than this.

Now i spray my plants but this gets only 1 inch of the soil wet. Should i make sure the water reaches to the lowest spot of the root? Because i don't wanna attract them to surface. And how much water for this oak seedling? 1 glass a day? Too much?

I know i am a pain in the ass when it comes to nature. But still, i love it.

Fatih,

I am not a proffessional grower by any means. But I see you are giving yourself stress over this so I will give my OPINION.

The 6 inch deep pot is too shallow. The tap root on the oak will hit bottom very soon. Use tall skinny pots. By that I mean you need deep pots, not large diameter. Stop spraying the trees and water them by pouring water directly on the soil. When you water, add enough water to water deeply. The pots should have a drain hole in the bottom or be permeable so the excess water can escape. Water only when you cannot reach moist soil with your finger stuck in the soil. This could be a few days or once a day, depending on your soil's ability to retain water in your environment.

Bill D.

Fatih
I agree with Bill, water only when the soil feels or looks dry. Water in the morning so as to cut down on disease issues. By shallow watering you make the root system not "search" for water. By watering less often the roots will go deeper giving the tree better chances of survival


Pat

Tell me 1 thing i am doing right .

You keep saving my ass. Thanks guys. These Oak seedlings are shocking me every new day. They grow too fast and their roots... I couldn't believe when i saw all roots coming out off the drainage holes of a 1 incher Oak seedling(is seedling the right word) ? I moved them all to 6 inch pots but as you mentioned Bill, this is not gonna be enough for long. I guess in a month i will need a larger one.

God knows when i will be buying that property for my pond(might be up to 2 years depending on my financial issues) . I am afraid these Oak won't fit in a pot until then. I don't know what to do. I thought these Oaks would grow this large in a year. Not in 3 weeks .


Elm and Plane tree seeds are driving me crazy. 5 days since sowing and only 1 of 40 Elm seeds has germinated. I put 50 Plane seeds between a wet paper towel and i keep it damp. NO GERMINATION!

Seedlings is correct.

Something you might want to read:

How to grow seedlings with taproots

Thanks Scott. Good link. I dunno if we have skinny pots .

Fatih
Just look at all the experience you are getting . Plant the oaks in the ground and then when you have a place to plant get some acorns and do it again. If you keep them in pots very long they will stunt after you plant them.... Then that's a whole new story... It can be done but you have to get aggressive with the roots meaning cut and spred out cause in a pot they will go around and around in a circle causing girdling of the tree when it gets large. So it's best not to confine in a small pot or container


Pat W

Pat's right, Fatih. Now that you know what to expect, when you get the property, use a backhoe to loosen up the soil then get more seeds and plant everything in place. Even your elms might make it under those different conditions.

Pat and Dudley, i got only 1 life guys . And i want to see some old trees before i die. Because the land i will buy will be treeless. Or there will be some fruit trees that i never enjoyed having. We don't have forests like you have around my region. So, i wanna have huge trees around my house as soon as possible. This is why i started now.

Pat , do you mean "to prevent stunted growth you should prevent root bound" ? If this is what you say, i am working hard on it. I thought that air pruning pots would not allow root bound and provide a healthy growth for my plants. Not enough?