Tree Care Guide

Planting instructions and care tips for bare-root trees and berry plants in Prince Edward Island and Atlantic Canada.

🚗Transport & Pickup Prep

Our trees are bare root trees, approximately 4–5 feet tall with branches. We package them at the farm in plastic bags with damp wood chips to keep roots protected and moist.

They can stay in the bag for a couple of days, but we recommend planting as soon as you get home.

☀️Planting Site Basics

• Sun: Choose a sunny location with at least6–8 hours of sunlight per day.
• Soil: Well-drained soil is best for trees and berries.

🪵Graft Union Placement

Keep the graft union (the raised nub/callus on the trunk) about 4 inches above ground. This helps prevent the tree from rooting above the graft.

🌱First Season Care

• You can add bone meal to the hole.
• No fertilizer during planting — it can burn young roots.
• In a few weeks the tree will leaf out and may blossom.
• Remove blossoms in year one so the tree puts energy into roots and establishment.

🕳️How To Plant Bare-Root Trees

An ideal planting day is calm and overcast (even drizzly). If it’s warm and breezy, plant later in the day.

🪣Root Handling & Soaking

• Temporarily mound soil/compost over roots and pull out one tree at a time.
• Or stand trees in a tub with water covering the roots.
• Soaking helps, but do not exceed 24 hours (roots can drown).
• Pear roots often benefit from soaking because they have fewer fine feeder hairs.
• If using Root Rescue (or similar), mix separately and dip roots just before planting.

🧤Digging & Placement

• Remove sod and weeds — grass steals nutrients and moisture.
• Dig a hole wider than the root spread, only slightly deeper than roots.
• Fracture the bottom and sides so roots can penetrate easily.

🧱Problem Soil (Clay / Wet Ground)

If heavy soil is your only option:

• Dig a shallow hole and add 4–5 inches of loose, sandy topsoil.
• Set roots on that layer.
• Mound soil 6–12 inches above the original surface over the planting area.
• Use a compost-rich mix for drainage and fertility.
• Cover with mulch so it won’t dry out too quickly.

🌾Orchard Aftercare & Weed Control

Grass and weeds can rob young trees of nutrients and slow establishment. Weed control is one of the biggest keys to success.

🍂Mulching Instructions

• Spread deciduous wood chips no thicker than 2 inches, 2–3 feet out.
• Shredded leaves, shredded bark, composted manure, or spoiled hay also work well.
• Avoid piling mulch against the trunk (rodents + rot risk).
• Some keep mulch back 6–10 inches and use pea gravel to suppress weeds.

✅Benefits of Mulch

• Enhances soil structure and fertility as it breaks down
• Suppresses weeds and grasses
• Reduces erosion from wind and rain
• Keeps soil cooler and retains moisture
• Helps protect against rapid freeze/thaw cycles
• Encourages earthworms and beneficial soil life

Optional: Hemp fibre mats can be used with or without mulch. Weight them down with rocks or a light layer of mulch.

💧Watering

🐛Pest & Disease Control

For bugs (and some fungal issues), we use neem oil. Apply as a dormant spray just before bud break when trees are dormant.

🕸️Tent Caterpillars

If you see webbing, break off the affected branch and burn it.

🧊Winter Protection

Protect the trunk from mice with inexpensive tree guards (Amazon often has affordable options).

🧴Fungicide (If Needed)

With just a few trees, you likely won’t need fungicide. If you do, look for a copper-based option (Safer’s has good natural selections).

✂️Pruning & Fruit Thinning

🌞Summer Pruning

Prune while trees are fruiting by removing non-fruiting branches to improve sunlight, airflow, and fruit quality.

❄️Winter Pruning

• Remove dead wood
• Remove branches that grow straight up (typically non-productive)

🍎Fruit Thinning

Thin fruit so branches don’t overload and break. For apples, aim for about 2 inches between each fruit.