Plant trees soon so you’ll have it made in the shade next summer

We usually don’t get respites from summer’s heat until late September, perhaps even October. We got lucky this year, but other summers won’t be so forgiving. So let’s not forget how important good trees are here in North Texas.

Great news! The best time for planting new shade trees is only weeks away. Nurseries have great supplies of the best types of trees now. They’ve been growing and holding them since spring, and they’re waiting for you to stop in to see them.

Steps in the process

If you’re planning a tree planting for your landscape this fall, consider these questions in sequence.

What are your needs? Will the tree be for shade? If so, will it be to shade the house and help with the utility bills, or will it be to cool down a recreational space? Answers to questions like those will determine the mature size of tree that would be appropriate and where you would place it.

What is the most visually pleasing place where you could plant your new tree? First of all, don’t plant it in the exact center of your yard, and don’t set it in line with other trees on the street or in line with fences or the sides of your house. Your tree needs to look like it grew there naturally, and nature doesn’t plant trees in predictable patterns.

Of course, if you need the tree for shade in a specific location, that’s going to be a big part of the decision. But if you have the choice, it’s best to use the artist’s ratio of 60:40. Subjects of photos and paintings (and where trees should go in our gardens) should be 60 percent away from one edge and therefore 40 percent away from the other. If you take a square or a rectangle and do the measurements, there will be four precise spots that will fit those parameters. Those are your best planting sites.

What are the best trees for your needs? Forget fast growth as a criterion, because all fast-growing shade trees have fatal flaws and live short and difficult lives. Buy for quality, good looks, adaptability and longevity instead.

Measure distances to your house, power lines and streets. Your new tree needs to fit the space you have for it.

The best large shade trees for our part of Texas are live oaks, Shumard red oaks, chinquapin oaks, bur oaks, cedar elms, pecans and Chinese pistachios. Best of the small to mid-sized trees include yaupon hollies, Little Gem and Teddy Bear magnolias, golden raintrees, Mexican plums, the largest varieties of crape myrtles and redbuds.

How do you find the best specimen? Shop at various nurseries. Look for those that take really good care of their shade trees, staking them to keep them in place, feeding and watering them regularly, and trimming out errant growth. Independent retail garden centers often have larger specimens than you’ll find in national chains. That can be especially helpful if you need shade sooner, or if you’re planting a new tree into a mature landscape and want it to look like it’s not just the new kid on the block.

Look for trees that are fully filled out with leaves. If the tree is sparse now, that suggests that it’s had some sorts of struggles, and you don’t want to invite a weak tree into your garden. This will all be especially noticeable with balled-and-burlapped trees that were dug with some loss of roots. If their leaves are starting to yellow, turn brown and fall prematurely, keep looking. Growers, however, have improved their skills of digging trees with minimum setback, so that if you buy from a reputable nursery you should have no reason to worry.

Should you have the new tree delivered, planted and guaranteed? You have to make that decision. If it’s a small tree that you can easily handle by yourself, and if you feel confident to do it, go for it. But don’t forget to wrap the tree to keep the leaves from being exposed to highway winds. You simply cannot drive slowly enough to avoid ruining the leaves.

If it’s a larger tree that will require special equipment to move and set it in place, you probably ought to let the nursery do that for you. They’ll know how to handle it carefully and plant it properly. Many homeowners, for example, dig planting holes too deep. Trees that are set more than 1 inch beneath the soil surface will eventually die from loss of roots. Your nurseryman will know how to do the job properly.

What after-care will the new tree need? New trees should be staked securely and held in place with taut cables for the first couple of years. Use secure stakes and drive them well into the ground. The cables should be at least 4 or 5 feet high on the trunk, and they must be padded so they won’t wear through the bark. Allow ample room for the trunk to grow without becoming girdled by the cable. Remove the stakes and cables once the tree is firmly rooted, usually after two or three years.

Trunks of new red oaks, chinquapin oaks and Chinese pistachios must always be protected with paper tree wrap to prevent sunscald and subsequent invasion by borers. Their bark is too thin to protect the trees once they’re planted out in the open. Your nurseryman will have the wrap. Leave it in place for 18 to 30 months.

Finally, keep your new tree watered deeply. Construct a berm to hold the water, and soak it every four or five days during its first couple of summers. Lawn irrigation will not be sufficient and the refillable bags don’t always work out so well.

This story was originally published September 8, 2016 at 3:28 PM with the headline "Plant trees soon so you’ll have it made in the shade next summer."