Detailed Explanation of Key Points for Transplanting Dawn Redwood: Get These Right for a Higher Survival Rate

The dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) is a plant with relatively high soil requirements, a very precious and rare plant, and also one of the plants that have survived on Earth for a relatively long time. With the growing demand for dawn redwoods, many of them need to be transplanted, so what are the things we need to pay special attention to during the transplanting process?

The Transplanting Season for Dawn Redwood

The dawn redwood is a fast-growing deciduous tree with deep roots and lush foliage, strong root sprouting and regeneration capacity, and highly active photosynthesis, respiration and transpiration in the above-ground leaf surface. From an ecological perspective, the period from autumn when the leaves are about to fall or have fallen, to the following spring before the new buds sprout and leaves unfold, is the best season for transplanting large dawn redwood trees.

Selection, Digging and Transport of Dawn Redwood Transplant Seedlings

1. Selection of dawn redwood. The dawn redwood is a fast-growing deciduous tree with a relatively tall trunk. When choosing a seedling source, select seedlings from sparsely planted sources, with lower branching points, well-balanced tree shape and good growth as the transplant seedlings.

2. Soil ball size and digging. The size of the soil ball and the digging are the key to the success or failure of transplanting large dawn redwood trees. Generally, the soil ball diameter is 6 to 8 times the diameter of the tree at breast height, and the soil ball height is 65% to 80% of the soil ball diameter. When digging, if thicker lateral roots are encountered, the roots should be cut off with a saw or shears, and the cut surfaces should be smoothed with a sharp knife. The soil ball should be dug into a spindle shape and bound tightly with leather rope to prevent the soil ball from falling apart during transport.

3. Lifting and transport. The lifting and transport of large trees is one of the important steps in transplanting. When lifting, the key is to protect the mud ball from falling apart and the bark from being damaged. When loading and placing, the mud ball must be stable and not roll, and at the same time the trunk or crown where it contacts the truck bed should be protected with soft materials, and the tree should be secured with rope. During transport, it should be covered with a tarpaulin to minimize water evaporation.

Key Points for Transplanting Dawn Redwood

1. Pruning and bud removal before planting. Reducing the tree's water transpiration through pruning, bud removal and trunk wrapping for moisture retention is one of the keys to improving the survival rate of transplanting large dawn redwood trees.

The dawn redwood has strong sprouting ability and tolerates pruning, so large dawn redwood trees to be transplanted should be heavily pruned before planting. First, for overly dense branches, thin them out at vertical intervals of 30 cm to 40 cm, keeping the large side branches, and the branches retained on the whole tree should not exceed 1/5 of the original tree; the orientation and position of the retained branches should be reasonable to ensure the integrity of the overall tree shape. Second, remove the buds on the small branches of the retained branches, keeping only the top 5 to 7 buds. After pruning, treat the cuts on large branches promptly; the commonly used methods are applying white paint, paraffin, or binding with plastic cloth.

Because the dawn redwood trunk is relatively tall, wrap the trunk tightly with wet straw rope, hemp cloth and other materials for transport; this provides a certain degree of moisture retention and insulation for the trunk, and the wrapping height should exceed 1/2 of the total trunk height.

2. Digging the hole. The size of the tree hole should preferably be 50 cm to 60 cm larger than the soil ball. If the soil is relatively clayey, the tree hole size should be appropriately enlarged according to actual conditions. The pre-backfilled soil should be loose loam, and cinder or coarse sand should be mixed into the pre-backfilled soil to increase the soil's water permeability and air permeability. The dug tree holes should be filled with water separately on the evening before planting, and the seepage and leakage should be checked on the following morning; if leakage is found, plug the leak promptly.

3. Planting. Carefully lower the large tree at an angle into the previously prepared planting hole, remove the rope tied around the trunk, stand the trunk upright, adjust the main ornamental side of the crown to face the right direction, place it into the tree hole and straighten it, and temporarily secure it with wire or straw rope to prevent the seedling from toppling. Remove the mud ball wrapping and part of the straw rope.

Planting the seedling involves backfilling soil in two stages. In the first stage, backfill 1/3 to 1/2 of the planting soil around the soil ball first, then water and stir it into mud; after the mud is half dry, backfill planting soil for the second stage and build a retaining berm.

4. Support and fixing. After planting, the large tree should be supported and fixed immediately to carefully prevent toppling. The support points are best at about 1/2 to 2/3 of the tree height, and a protective layer should be added to prevent bark damage. If planted in patches in a regular pattern and the density is relatively high, at a height of 2 m to 2.5 m, moso bamboo can be used to connect lengthwise and crosswise, and then logs can be used on the inner side to install diagonal braces in different directions; this kind of support is both stable and saves materials.

I believe that after reading the above article, you have gained some understanding of the relevant content about dawn redwood transplanting. I hope the above content can help everyone. For more exciting content, please continue to follow our website~

You have gained some understanding of the relevant content about dawn redwood transplanting. I hope the above content can help everyone. For more exciting content, please continue to follow our website~