Somewhere between 3:30am and 4:00am, I decided I want to buy a tree and plant it in the forest, and hope its not cut down in the next 2 years for a new subdivision. I just a small one you buy at a nursery for your front yard. But, I have no clue how much they cost. I don't want to walk all the way to the nursery with 30 dollars and find out they're 300. How much is a plain old small tree? Pine, maple, anything. "then i can come back in 40 years and say 'i planted this'" "or rather, 'before this 60 floor office tower was here, i planted a tree here'"
trees grow free all around you if you just open your eyes and look for them. i had at least 15 baby maples growing in my yard before i cut the lawn this spring. keep in mind these are the same kind of maples that ive seen go for up to 60 bucks at a nursery where theyve probably abused the hell out of the thing and pruned it all wrong. i bet theirs gobs of them though if your lucky enough to live near a forest or park. just pluck one up that looks like a smaller variety of something that is thriving in your forest on a cloudy day... or sometime close to dusk if you can. preferrably after its rained or you watered it or if the soil is moist from the forest mulch which it probably is... try to pull out all of the roots very gently. if you mess up, theres probably plenty of small trees for you to practice on in the forest but its really very simple once you get the hang of it. itll tolerate some feeder root loss but as long as the main root is intact with a decent amount of feeders and you do everything else right, it will survive probably. though it might not enjoy the trip you put it through and be a little shocked and not grow much initially, it will be all the stronger afterwards. never hurts to talk to the thing and try to let it know what your doing either. or just try to have good intentions, and work with the natural flow and pattern for the greater good. dont let your own wants get in the way, be open, y'know? then just move it to a pre-dug whole where it has enough space to survive , water very generously and push all the soil back on top of it gently but firmly. try not to leave any dirt that you took out lying around. and the whole probably wont need to be as big as you think. i remember with my first tree i dug something the size of, well, something really bigger than i needed to and made it a lot harder than it should have been. the tree is thriving though now and its really really cool to watch it grow, very rewarding. also, dont just plant it in the middle of a field or a park, i hear those trees get cut down by the city. maybe you could call the city and ask for permission. i dont see why they would object.. or try to do it camoflauged not too far from where the forest/field line breaks if there is one. and you could always just plant the tree on your property, or maybe a neighbor wants one. good luck and happy planting : ) aaand http://www.arborday.org will give you 10 free trees hardy to your area for just 10 bucks along with a guide to trees and how to plant and care for them. thing is, you have to wait until winter or spring to get most of them shipped since thats the best planting time. might be a good idea to let your city and some people around you about that organization and the deals they give...
That is amazing, mate - such a lovely idea. I'd like to get involved in replanting baby trees in places. I am sure there must be some organisation or something that do that.
I'd agree with stranger. In an old forrest (and elseware) many young trees will sprout but most will not grow up unless an old tree has fallen and given space in the canopy for the young one to grow up and take its place in the sunlight. It also depends on the tree. Some species will stay smaller and grow off the filtered light that passes through. We used to pull young trees that sprouted up alongside rural roads that would otherwise definately be cut down and transplant them as stranger said. If you get a larger species, try planting it in a spot where a tree has just fallen. It may have a better chance of growing big. Also, cities and Universities, etc. are always cutting down old trees for "renovations" which annoys me. I once lived in a small town where the center was a park with oak trees that were over 100 years old. Some businesses actually had pictures of the park depicting native americans visiting the town and you could recognize some of the same trees. Well, the town decided to renovate the park and cut down all of those trees!!!!!!!!!!!! I was so upset at this. Just imagine what times those trees had seen! Killing an old tree is such an injustice, something you can naver take back. It was also so nice to sit under those big trees in the middle of a small town during the hot summer. Now the park is all grass wth a few small tree varieties speckled around. I guess someday the old trees would have died on their own, and maybe someday some of the trees they planted will grow up as big. "The times they are a changin"
thats a great idea, but try to pick up one already growing somehwere and plant it in a spot where it can grow up forver without being cut down.
I agree.... the young saplings that grow underneath the canopy can be transplanted somewhere where they well grow better. That way you are getting a tree for free and ensuring it grows well.
