Author:
John Stephens
Date Of Creation:
21 January 2021
Update Date:
29 June 2024
Content
Conifers are a variety of evergreen varieties. Young pine needles need special care and strict protection from animals and harsh sunlight throughout the first years. Once stronger, the pine tree can grow on its own for decades. You should only plant pine trees when you are really determined and ready to accept difficulties, otherwise, it is best to buy seedlings to plant that will have a higher success rate.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Planting Pine seedlings
Choose the pine variety best suited to your soil type and weather conditions. Some commonly used ornamental pines include white pine, North American pine and Scottish pine. Ask the seller for the necessary environmental conditions if you live in a location with a different climate or elevation than where the seedling is sold.
You need to decide whether to choose a bare-root seedling or a soil-bearing plant. Bare-root pine seedlings should be planted in late fall and winter, when the plants are hibernating. Potting seedlings can be planted at any time, however, the plants should be shielded during the hottest summer months to avoid sunlight and replenish water to avoid dehydration.- Most seedlings can be stored for weeks at a temperature of 2 - 3 hỏiC, but you should check with the seller in case the variety you buy has special storage conditions.
Water and rearrange the roots if needed. The roots of the plant should be kept moist until planting but not soaked in water. This can kill the plant. If the roots are woven into a solid mass around the soil, gently align the main root branches so they can spread.- Some seedlings are usually sold with a small pot of soil surrounding the roots. Try to keep the soil from falling out when rearranging the roots.
Choose a suitable area for planting. Every pine tree should have an open space, without any seedlings or the underground root system of the big tree around. Choose a location where the plant can receive direct sunlight even during the coldest parts of the day.- If you cannot plant a pine tree in a shaded place on the west side of the tree, see the instructions below for artificial shade.
- Sand and humus are the best mix for pine trees, but you should only mix suitable organic humus like algae if your soil is hard clay.
- Choose a well-drained area. A water-filled pit 30 cm deep must drain within 12 hours. If not, you need to install a drainage system for the tree.
"If you want to plant several pine trees next to each other, you should plant them 3 to 4 meters apart."
Maggie Moran
Gardener Maggie Moran is a professional gardener in Pennsylvania.
Maggie Moran
Gardener
Choose a date to plant the tree. Plants should not be planted on a windy, dry day or at temperatures above 30 C. The soil may not be able to withstand water or ice the day you plant the plant, nor may it withstand drought.
Dig a hole larger than the roots and lay a layer of soil mixed with manure into the bottom of the hole. Should choose the best quality soil, spread the bottom of the hole with a layer about 10 cm thick after digging. Make sure the hole is large enough to cover the roots even with the underlying soil lining.
- Warning: Contact the environmental company to see where underground water lines are located before digging a planting hole.
- Try to plant the plant at the same height as the nursery. If you are unsure, it is best to plant your plant at a higher altitude instead of a lower one.
- If you want to plant more than one pine tree, plant them 3 to 4 meters apart so that the tree can mature without obstruction. Some species of pines may require more space, such as large Aussie pines.
Remove the potting bag or wrapping around the plant. Although sacks and other organic compounds are degradable and can be left behind when planting, you should still carefully remove the mantle to facilitate plant growth.
Gently place the root fertilizer in the hole and cover with soil. Fill the hole with soil, while shoveling the soil regularly use a shovel to crush the soil, taking care not to step with your feet. Shovel the soil into the hole until it is equal to the surrounding ground or slightly lower in case you live in a dry climate, so water should be able to flow into the stump.
- If necessary, you can have someone hold the tree upright while filling the soil with soil.
Only place stakes if the tree cannot stand on its own. You should only put stakes for the tree if the place where you are planting is often suddenly strong winds. If you are afraid that the wind might cause the tree to fall, use one or two stakes tied together, pay attention to allow enough space for the tree to grow. Avoid tying ropes directly around the tree.
Protect the young pines from the sun. You can create a sunshade to protect the sapling from canvas or plywood. But preferably, you should plant it in the shade of large trees or from surrounding buildings. Look for shady areas on the west side of the tree, where the sun in this direction emits the hottest temperatures of the day. advertisement
Method 2 of 3: Take care of the young pine tree
Regularly spread alluvium around the base of the tree. Sawdust is both cheap and good sediment for pine trees. Spread a mulch a few centimeters thick around the plant minus the area around the base.
- Although the mulch helps to limit weeds and allows the plant to grow, you should still remove the weeds or other small plants growing around you if you have one.
- Do not use a plastic shield under the mulch layer. Plants need air and water to absorb nutrients from the mulch.
The amount of water needed for your plant depends on the variety of pine you planted, the weather and soil conditions. Instead of following a certain guideline, you should pay attention to moistening the soil around the plant, here are a few suggestions for you:
- The soil feels moist and when picked up, if not detached, no more water is needed because watering too much can flood the roots. You only need to water when the soil is quite dry and crumbling, and water until the soil is damp again.
- Water much in the fall so the plants can store water for the winter. Additional watering during the winter will prevent the plant from wilting, which is extremely dangerous when the plant prefers humid weather.
Protect the sapling from animals. A plywood sunshade can also repel animals. However, if you live in an area with a lot of birds or other large wildlife, you should use plastic pipes or wire mesh fence around the seedlings.
Protect young pine trees from harmful insects. Pine trees can attract a number of harmful insects such as weevils, wood-eating insects such as the bark beetle, and hair clippers that spread nematodes. Whether or not they may kill the plant, damage is inevitable.
- Many pests can be controlled with chemicals, you can spray fungicides and insects into young plants. To be able to kill the pest, you may need to spray several times as the larvae stage of the insect can still live under the bark and be unaffected.
- You can also prevent pests by taking good care of the plant. Keep the plant healthy, as pests are less likely to attack healthy young plants, for example. Plant your plants in a medium soil so that they have a strong root system, and regularly check the plant for dead or dead branches.
- Growing pine varieties (such as white pine) with trees or under the canopy of other woody plants can protect them from spruce beetles.
- It is best to remove damaged, susceptible plants. Always uproot and destroy trees that have died from wood-eating bugs.
Prune only dead branches or pests. Pine trees do not need pruning to regulate growth, even though this can adversely affect growth. Just cut dead branches or pests closest to the base of the tree to form spots between the canopy and the base. advertisement
Method 3 of 3: Growing Pine Tree from Seeds
Knowing how long this will take, growing a pine tree from a seed is a lengthy and challenging process. You will need to harvest the seeds when the pine is ripe, mostly in spring. You need to prepare the seedling within 30 to 60 days depending on the variety and the climate according to the following procedure before potting the plant. The seedling will grow very slowly and it may take up to a year to grow out without risk of dying.
- While most pines ripen between August and October, some pine species such as Scottish pine need not be mature until March. The climate where you live is also an important factor. Read the description of ripe pine nuts carefully to see what kind of pineapple you need to choose.
- See the section Growing Pine from Seedling for a quicker and simpler method to plant a tree.
Harvest pine fruit. Pine has two types: male pine and female pine. Only the female pine has seeds. Choose large pine cones with eyes that are not fully open. If the eyes had fully opened up, the pine nuts inside might have fallen out.
- You can pick up the fallen pine or pick it directly from the tree by gently twisting the pine to let it leave the branch. Females are usually located on tall branches, so you may need a ladder or pole to pick the fruit.
- Choose brown or purple pine cones, as those that are green are unripe and the seeds cannot be used.
- Pine trees with more pods give better quality seeds.
Leave the pine cones on a warm, dry surface. If possible, dry the pine nuts in direct sunlight, leaving the eyes open so you can collect the seeds. You can warm the room to speed up this process, but do not let the temperature exceed 45 ºC.
Split grain. Each eye normally has one or two seeds inside, sometimes the seed has a thin "wing" to catch the wind. Shake the pine in a tray with a coarse cloth or net about 1 cm thick to allow the seeds to fall off the net.
- Gently shake the tarpaulin to make it easier to obtain pine nuts.
- You can use tweezers to pick up the sticky seeds or otherwise just remove the seeds from a few more pine nuts.
Place the seeds in a pre-filled jar with filtered water and soak for 24 to 48 hours. Use room temperature water. This not only provides water for the seeds to start growing, but also checks which seeds are capable of germinating.Good quality seeds will gradually sink to the bottom of the jar. The empty and damaged seeds will float on top.
- Cut out some of the largest floating seeds to see if they are truly empty. If the seeds are firm inside, wait a little longer for the seeds to continue sinking to the bottom.
- Remove any floating particles after completing this step. These seeds are completely unusable.
- Large nurseries often run bags of seeds under running water to remove infectious pathogens. This is difficult to do at home but you can pay attention to change the water every 12 or 24 hours.
Decide whether or not to store the seeds before planting. New pine nuts harvested in the fall can be planted immediately. However, it is also very good if the new pine nuts are incubated in a special medium to speed germination and reduce the chance of seeds rotting after planting. This way of incubation that simulates this ideal natural condition is called seed stratification.
- Different pine types are suitable for different conditions. Look up the type of pine you plant in your site crop identification book or online if you have one and find out how long the “seed stratification” process takes. If you can't find this information, the method below will be very effective as long as you can check the seed growth regularly.
- In general, pine can be grown in regions with relatively warm climates in the south (but not in too high places), often without stratification before sowing, just to be stored in a cool, dry place room. Meanwhile, pine species that live in colder and harsher climates will not be able to grow without incubation in a cold, humid environment.
For small amounts of pine nuts, incubate the seeds in a damp tissue. If you have a handful of seeds or less, this is the easiest method to apply. Stack up the tissue in a stack 3 to 6 mm thick. Just allow enough water to wet the entire stack of paper, then hold a corner of the stack of paper upright so excess water can drain. Spread the seeds on half of the paper, then fold the stack of paper in half to cover the seeds. Place the stack in a zippered food bag or similar plastic bag and store in the refrigerator cooler at 5 ºC.
- You can insert a straw or plastic tube into the top of the bag before you pull the zipper to allow air to circulate and ensure the environment has enough oxygen.
- Note: Pine nuts absorb nutrients after weeks in a warm, dark environment before being refrigerated. The incubation times of each pine species vary significantly depending on the type of tree. You should look for specific information online if you can see what kind of pine nut you have.
For large seed counts, incubate the seeds in a thin cloth bag. Immediately after the seed soaking step is completed, place a maximum of 0.2 kg of seeds in a square cheesecloth or other soft cloth and tie. Hang or hold the bag for one minute to allow excess water to drain. Place the cloth bag with the seeds in a plastic bag and tie the top of the bag so that the water continues to drain and the seeds do not get submerged. Hang the bag in the refrigerator cooler at a temperature of 5 C.
- Note: If you can identify the species of pine you are planting, look up the internet for information on the “stratification process” for that variety. You should also keep the bag in a warm place before placing it in the refrigerator.
Check for seed germination every week. When the seeds start to germinate, they will peel off the bark and the roots will sprout. Depending on the variety of the pine variety and the seed, this can take anywhere from 3 weeks to several years, although you don't need to keep the seeds for that long before sowing.
- For seeds that have not sprouted after weeks, you can stimulate by letting them dry and then repeating the incubation process.
- If the planting season is over or if you want to store the seeds for next year, let the crust dry with moisture inside and store the seeds in the refrigerator. Check regularly to make sure seeds are not sprouting.
Sow the seeds in tubes or pots with the soil mixture. Pine nuts are very susceptible to disease and can be infested by rodents if grown in the soil outdoors. Try to find plastic tubes designed for growing pine trees because this is the best way to stimulate the roots to grow long, supporting the plant's growth. If you don't have a planting tube, replacing it with small pots is also effective.
- Instead of using conventional soil, use a specialized potting mixture for growing pine or mix yourself with 80% pine bark and 20% moss humus.
- Press the seed into the ground with the roots facing down.
- If you still have the plant indoors, place the pot on a high table to avoid rat attack.
Take care of the seedlings. Follow the instructions in the Care of Young Pine for the best care. With the right level of light and water conditions, after a year or two depending on the cultivar, the seedlings are ready to be transferred to a higher tube or pot.
- Pine trees do well in a lot of light, but they are also quite sensitive and vulnerable during the hottest part of the day. Place the tree in a shade in the afternoon, for example near an east window.
- Always provide the plants with enough moisture, but do not let them get waterlogged.
- Carefully transfer plants to larger pots after they are 5 cm high for the small pine tube and 10 to 15 cm in the medium pot or tube.
Advice
- You should consult a gardening professional or post pictures of pine or seedlings on gardening websites to determine your type, which will help you determine exactly how best to care for the tree, This is especially important if you are planting your tree with seeds.
- See the list of common problems with pine trees for problems with sick trees and how to fix them.
- Although the pine is an evergreen variety, the tree can shed some leaves in the fall. You should only worry if this happens during other seasons, chances are your pine tree has become infected.
What you need
For seedlings:
- Sawdust or other humus
- Shovel or fly
- Piles and lanyards (usually not required)
- Shade (if there is no natural shade in the afternoon)
- Trellis or any other item (if there are large animals in the vicinity)
For seeds
- Pine nuts (see detailed instructions on how to choose pine cones)
- Napkin or cheesecloth bag
- Zippered bag
- Refrigerator or cool environment
Warning
- While the majority of people use moist sand or mud moss for compost, these methods carry a higher risk of infection than the methods introduced here.
- Fertilizer is not usually needed in pine trees and if used incorrectly can burn the tree. Fertilizers should only be used according to expert instructions.
