Winter
The last week in January and the first week in February, in my opinion, is the best time for transplanting trees and plants. Evergreens are in a somewhat state of dormancy and deciduous trees are fully dormant. Here in north Florida we can already begin to experience springtime weather in February so I do not wait any later than the first week. I have a question for you, The stimulus that triggers trees and plants to "awaken" in the spring, is it caused by overall temperature for a certain amount of time? Or is it amount or length of daylight?, is it both?, or is it different reasons for different trees and plants? I would be happy to hear your answers. email Suzette
I move only small trees for several reasons. The first of which is that they are easier to move. They recover better. You almost always have better success. I believe a tree will come back quicker and therefore continue to grow at a normal or near normal rate the very first year. It might even reach or surpass a larger transplanted tree of the same species planted at the same time.
Dig as much of the root ball as you possibly can handle. I have even pulled small trees up by their roots if the soil is loose enough and damp enough.
I have the hole the tree is supposed to be placed in already dug and waiting . This prevents the roots from drying out too much. This hole should be 1 1/2 - 2 times the size of the root ball that you have dug. If I have a plant that I have pulled up by its roots I kind of have to imitate the pattern of the roots when I dig its hole. Which means you won't know what that pattern is until you've pulled it up. Therefore the roots will be exposed for a longer time. They can be easily wrapped in something wet or throw wet pine straw over them.
Plant the tree or plant at the same depth it was growing at in its original spot. I might add a little decomposed leaf litter to the soil if it is hard clay. Backfill trying to cover the roots well, with as few air pockets as possible. Water in so that it settles the soil in around the roots. Remember to help the tree through its first year when droughts come along by extra soaking watering. If you only water it lightly during a drought the surrounding dry ground will draw the water away.
Other things I have done around the yard are cutting back dead and, or frozen plants, letting the cut up material fall to the ground. I also do a lot of fixing up around the yard since there is not a lot of other yard work happening. I have large pine branches that edge my beds. They take a bit more work than one would think. I am using this time to replace all the rotten wood. There are lots of pines around my acreage, so I have a constant supply of limbs. I select the ones that fit what I want them for. Such as; certain limbs have the right curve to them where I need curves, certain branches have crooks if I need a sharp bend, and some are straight. If you cannot find the proper bend or length use a hatchet to cut the branch. Several short lengths placed down in a curve can be formed to make a nice bend.
Also, at this time I have left a light layer of pine straw that last fell. This layer is left because it helps prevent wear on weak lawns. With two children, their friends and three dogs romping around the place. The grass in winter can be worn down to the soil. I have found this very effective in keeping the wear down. If you don't have this kind of wear or if your grass is in great shape, tight and in good sun, you can neaten up a lawn by just using a lawn mower that mulches. This will clean up all the little bits of debris on the surface of your lawn.