How to plant a fruit tree properly
An apple tree lives 50 years, and half its fate is decided on planting day. Step-by-step: hole, soil, depth, watering.
Planting mistakes are not obvious at once: a tree may struggle along for years before you realise it was planted too deep or in a hole of poor soil. Fixing that later is almost impossible.
When to plant in Estonia
The best time is early spring, after the soil thaws and before buds open. Autumn planting (September–October) also works, but the sapling must root before frosts. Container plants can go in all summer with regular watering.
The hole: wider, not deeper
The classic mistake is a narrow deep hole. Fruit tree roots grow sideways, so the hole should be twice as wide as the root ball but no deeper. Loose soil at the bottom will settle and the tree will sink.
Most important: the root collar
Where the trunk meets the roots must stay at ground level or 3–5 cm above. A buried collar rots and the tree dies slowly over years. This is mistake number one in DIY planting.
Backfill and watering
Fill the hole with a mix of excavated soil and compost — no fresh manure, which burns roots. Water with two or three buckets so the soil settles and hugs the roots. Mulch the root circle without touching the trunk.
The first year
Water once a week in dry weather, stake against wind, protect the trunk from hares in winter with mesh.
Ordering saplings from us from Dutch and Polish nurseries? We plant them straight away, correctly, with a take-rate guarantee.