I work in a Target Distribution Center and as part of an Arbor Day celebration, upper management handed out tiny twigs wrapped in wet paper towels and told is they were dogwood trees. Under the towel I saw that the twig had tiny roots wisping off of it. I was skeptical but I went ahead and dug a hole, filled it with garden soil, planted the twig in the middle, topped it off with black mulch, and watered generously. Can I expect this thing to grow or did I mess it all up?
by mbaugha85
21 Comments
Nope, you nailed it. Keep watering the bejeezus out of it though- a small plant like that in the full sun with a tiny root system is begging to die a dry death at some point. I’d keep it constantly moist. You are far more likely to lose the tree to one dry afternoon than experience root rot
Might be better to pot it and keep in a shadey area for a while until the roots get established.
I would have started it off in a pot tbh, less chance of it getting damaged and will establish better.
Edit – Forgot to say, I’m talking from my experience of having planted small things in the ground, only to later run them over that same afternoon with a lawn mower, accidentally step on them, or get them dug out by a fox.
Your employer is awesome! Your twig might need some protection against harsh conditions (frost or hot sun light, i don’t know where you live). If you don’t want to replace it in a pot you can build a small tunnel/mini shelter with some pvc pipes and an anti-frost/bright uv-cover
You could put up 4 little posts and put some shade cloth over it, if you really care if this one grows.
You could also get one at Home Depot / Lowes for $25 that’s already established and a few feet tall.
Good luck, I hope this one makes it 🙂
I love trees so much. What a beautiful thing.
Just planted 60 “twigs with roots” myself. Congrats on the tree you’ll have in a decade or two 😅
I did something like this in the marsh and the rain took it away.
Tent it. Cheap landscape fabric or bird friendly netting, spikes to keep the material from rubbing on the twig, and stakes to hold it in place. We planted redbud saplings and we noticed their leaves were getting burned so we tented them. New leaves came in beautiful.
Everyone gave great suggestions I’d just like to add putting spikes and some kind of netting or caging around it to keep someone from stepping on it. It’s just a baby and needs extra care and protection.
Get rid of the bark mulch that stuff is no good for trees
Remove the mulch from the twig … about 2 inches, so it can get some sunshine.
Put cage around
I feel so much better potting it and keeping it close to home. I have a 4 ft. Swamp laurel oak still in a pot because I live in a rural area and there are so many critters out at night! Look!
https://preview.redd.it/a77yvcflg9wc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9dcec9e6625fbbc5799a064e4ae84183a8ecedb9
Sorry for the mess working in that area! It used to be a 12” twig about I guess 3-4 years ago and it’s still caged and the plastic pot is being destroyed by the sun but he loves it.
Dogwoods are a pretty tenacious invasive species. If you chose to grow it beware that new seedlings may start popping up in your neighborhood / yard.
Arbor foundation
Might grow. Arbor day foundation sends those out to anyone making a 10 dollar donation.
The only suggestion I would make that hasn’t already been made is to avoid mounding mulch into a volcano shape around it. 1) keep it flat 2) keep it way from the tiny trunk (and then the large trunk). https://www.whygoodnature.com/volcano-mulching#:~:text=Volcano%20Mulching%2C%20also%20known%20as,strangling%20and%20killing%20the%20tree.
Where there roots on the twig
I’ll be planting about 25 Lilac twigs and 25 oak twigs soon.
Put a stick next to it so that somebody won’t kill it by accident.