Any pointers on planting a tree?

[Nickster]

I just got a fence up around my backyard, so now I'm looking to beautify a bit. I'm going to check out the nurseries today and see if there are any nice looking trees to get. Just wondering if there are any things that I should do/get that aren't obvious to a novice planter?

[Blue Gardener]

1. The size when it is fully grown

One of the biggest mistakes people make is not realizing exactly how big the tree will be when it matures. They often plant large trees too close to the house, the fence, the street, or the neighbor's yard. I have this problem with trees planted by the previous owners, and I'm constantly trimming branches away from the house, and trimming ones that hang over the street from another tree.
Also, if you don't like raking leaves, consider something like a thornless honey locust. The leaves are very small and don't need to be raked every fall. It still provides a nice dappled shade.

[Nickster]

2. Right, we were a bit worried about the size. We want something pretty, but not like a towering

redwood. We went looking at a few nurseries and got a good idea. I'm thinking about a dwarf maple and maybe a crab apple tree. They were about 15 feet tall, so almost fully mature. I don't think they'll get too wide either if we keep them pruned nicely. My wife wanted a magnolia, but when we read the tag, it looked like those get monsterous. About how far away from the fence should they go?

[Blue Gardener]

3. Far enough away to keep your neighbors happy

Sounds like your getting trees that shouldn't be too much trouble. The people at the nursery should be able to offer some good advice on exactly where the tree should be planted. Also, make sure you have the utilities marked first! That might have some impact on where you can dig. There should be an 800 number you can call.

[Nickster]

4. We just had a fence put in late last week, so we still have the markings for that.

We really got screwed over on where they put the lines. One line goes straight through the middle of the yard and then we have two lines going along the back of the fence. We have a fairly clear line along the north side of the fence, thinking a few feet from the fence on the north side and then a few feet away from the power lines along the back of the fence.

Now I just have to figure out how I'm going to dig a big enough hole for these babies once I get them. There's a ton of clay just below the surface, real pain to dig in.

[yardwork]

5. If you have heavy clay soil, don't plant your trees too deep.

Try this approach. Dig a hole that is very wide but no deeper than the root ball itself. In fact, it's probably a good idea to let the root ball stick up above the planting hole a bit. If you plant it too deep, the roots will rot down in the heavy clay soil.

You can dig the hole as WIDE as you like, and amend it with lots of good soil amendments. Ask at the nursery for advice. If you have compost or old leaves, mix that into the soil before you put it back in the hole.

Spread the roots out into your nice shallow, wide planting hole.

Also, consider buying younger trees, rather than full-grown. They will actually catch up to the bigger ones, as the smaller trees will be less stressed by the transplant.