Congratulations! You are now
the proud owner of the new Valley Forge American elm. The most Dutch Elm Disease
Tolerant American Elm ever tested and released by our USDA National Arboretum
research team.
Select an area
large enough for a large shade tree.
Valley Forge can grow as much as 3 – 6 ft/year. Try to avoid overhead lines and
cables if possible. If
planting more than one elm a 30 ft spacing is a good distance. These can be planted as close as
10 ft from buildings or structures. In
the past they were the #1 tree for between the sidewalk and the street.
Dig a hole at
least 3 ft in diameter and only as deep as the root ball. Never plant a tree deeper than the
top of the root ball. Remove
your tree from the plastic container.
(Never pull or lift it by the stem that breaks the fine feeder roots.) Turn it upside down and gently tap or
shake it from the container. The
bamboo stake will help the tree grow straight for the first year. Never plant the top of the root
ball deeper than the top of the surrounding soil level. Place the tree in the hole
and backfill the hole halfway and gently tamp the soil. Then place the 2 year slow release
fertilizer packet about 2`` from the root ball.
(Do not open the packet) Then
put the rest of the soil in and gently tamp.
The root ball top should be at soil level or about 1`` above ground
level. (Always lift the plant
with your hand under the root ball and not by the stem.)
Use the extra
soil to form a berm 18 inches from the center of the tree to hold water. At this time water in your tree and let
it soak. Then water it again. Elms 6 1/2 feet and larger include a free
Tree Pro tree protector. See additional instructions for
installation. The large bamboo
stake can be used to stabilize the protector which will completely cover and
protect your tree the first winter and prevent rabbit and lawn mower injury for
the first few years. Leave it
on the tree trunk till the trunk is at lease 2 ½ - 3`` in diameter.
After planting
you will need to water daily for a while if it drains well and then twice a week
for several months until the new roots grow into the surrounding soil. After that period, you should
continue to water for the next several years if you have dry or drought
conditions. The best way to
water is with a fine mist from the end of your hose for a long period. Mist the surrounding ground long and
deep and it will act as a water reservoir.
After the first year your tree should be 6 – 8` tall and you may want
to re-stake with a large stake. Just
pull out the old stake (cut away all old ties).
Insert the new stake deep and solid in the ground and re-tie with nursery
stretch tape loosely. The
following year staking should no longer be necessary. If it doesn’t need staking don’t.
Flexing of the tree makes the trunk stronger.
If your elm was
above the stake we top it and when the new growth starts we put a single piece
of masking tape on the new sprout and around the stem to make it grow straight. Leave this tape in place and the
elm will naturally grow out of it and become straight. The tree should grow 3 – 6` the
first year. When the trees
grows above 7 ft. above ground prune back about 4 – 6``. When the new growth gets about 4
– 5`` select an uppermost branch to tape up vertically with masking tape. This slows down the top growth and
creates a stronger trunk.
Additional Notes
Because we grow
our elms close to each other using overhead sprinklers they sometimes develop
leaf spot. This will not hurt the
tree and once planted they will grow out of it.
Your Valley Forge
Elm is one of the toughest trees we have ever used. We guarantee them for 30 days. Just call us if any problems.
For Dutch elm
disease we are very confident they won’t get it. Therefore, we guarantee them
against DED for 15 years. If
you believe they get DED in the future just call us and we will give you
shipping instruction and we will have our lab test it for DED.
Thanks and Good
Luck,
Mike Shade
Botany Shop Garden Center
Questions or comments?
mailto:info@botanyshop.com
Updated November 16 2003
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© 2000-2002 Botany Shop, Inc.