IT’S OFFICIAL—SUMMER IS HERE 

Don’t be afraid to plant. 

Yes indeed, summer has arrived.  In fact I would dare to say that it arrived a couple of weeks ago.  How many days now has it been since we had any significant rain?  Probably too many for most of us but I have to tell you that this spring has been a welcomed change from this time last year.

It’s funny how fast we forget things like the weather.  Customers will ask me how our season is going and I will reply that it is like day and night compared to last year.  “Oh!” they will say, “what happened last year?”  Just in case you have forgotten, we had weekend after weekend of cold and rainy weather all the way up to July.  In other words the whole first half of the year was dreadful.  Nobody felt like gardening and therefore no one came into the garden centers.

This year on the other hand has been just the opposite.  Since about mid April it has been non-stop.  Every weekend has been sunny and when it does rain it is either at night or in the middle of the week.  Sort of like Camelot.  Customers are happy and in the mood to plant just about anything that has color on it.  Shrubs, trees, annuals and perennials are all flying out the door.  But that is all about to change because now it is summer and everyone freaks out about the sun and heat.  “Can I still plant now or should I wait until the fall?”  It’s time for my annual lecture. 

Planting this time of year is not only okay, it is smart.  Warm soils mean fast root growth which means speedy establishment.  The soils are dry enough to grade and work and therefore it is perfect for completing landscape projects.  It is a lot more pleasant to work in the sun than it is in the cold rain.  You can work on your tan at the same time.  The advantages are endless because you control the moisture in the soil instead of Mother Nature.

The one single trick to being successful this time of year is to plant properly into well prepared soil and “water-in” plants correctly.  This “watering-in” step is where most home owners screw up.  You have got to water deeply and thoroughly when you first plant.  Here is how you do it.

Dig your hole just as deep as the root ball and twice as wide.  Work some compost and organic fertilizer into the soil you have removed from the hole and have it ready to return to the hole.  If the soil is bone dry then fill the hole with water and let it soak into the surrounding soil first.  Place your plant in the hole and check to make sure the top of the root ball is level with the existing grade of the landscape.  (You may need to rough up the root ball or remove part of the burlap at this time).  Replace half of the soil and firm it up by stepping on it with your feet if it is a big hole or with your hands if it is a small hole.  Now add several gallons of water to the hole and let it soak in.  Again replace the rest of the soil and make a moat (we call them watering wells) around the plant that you can fill with an inch or two of water.  Fill the well once, let it soak in and fill it again and if it soaks in really fast then fill it once more.  The concept here is to saturate the soil surrounding the new root ball so that the plant has enough water to draw from for several days.  When this is done properly you should only have to water once or twice a week  and after a month you can remove the watering well, grade out the dirt and finish off with some compost of bark mulch.  This process will guarantee you success, I don’t care how hot it gets.

For 15 years I landscaped in the Sacramento Valley using the above technique and rarely lost a plant.  You should be just as successful here in the Puget Sound where it is a heck of a lot cooler.  So don’t be afraid to plant in the summer.  It’s really a very smart thing to do.