GARDENING Q&A

Q:This will be our first Christmas in our own home. We want to buy a living Christmas tree and plant it in our yard after the holidays. Can you give us any tips to help make sure it will survive?

Answer: What a great way to remember that first Christmas. Start by choosing a tree species that is naturally acclimated to the environment of central Virginia. Frasier fir makes a classic Christmas tree, but it has a hard time acclimating to our hot, humid summers. Get your tree from a reputable garden center and rely on their trained staff to advise you on a species that will do well in your area.

Next, pick a spot in your yard that will give the tree plenty of space. Your 6-foot-tall tree might look good near the house now, but in 10 years it could be 20 feet tall with lower branches 10 feet wide.

Dig the hole for the tree now, while the ground is easy to work. It could be frozen the week after Christmas. Once you have the hole dug, fill it with mulch to insulate the soil. Also be sure to cover the backfill with mulch to keep it from freezing.

A critical issue is to keep the tree indoors no more than five to seven days. Trees kept in a warm house much longer than that have a harder time making the transition back outdoors.

While the tree is indoors, be sure to keep the root ball moist. Once you plant the tree, water it well and give it a couple of inches of mulch. This will insulate the roots and help it make the transition.

This is a great way to mark your first home together and make a valuable addition to your landscape. In fact, as I'm writing this column I can see the white pine my wife and I planted our first Christmas in this house 33 years ago. Q:I planted a Kousa dogwood last December. I kept it watered and mulched during the winter, and in May it produced small flowers and normal leaves. By late summer, it had lots of small buds, but the leaves stared falling off by mid-September. Do you think this tree will survive the winter?

Answer: Your Kousa sounds like it suffered from the summer heat and drought. The tree rejected its leaves early because it couldn't get enough moisture to support them. Fortunately, we had relatively good rainfall in the fall, so the tree should be going into winter dormancy with adequate moisture. While your tree is under stress, I doubt that it is on the "way out." Q:I have two garden spots. One is 34 feet by 27 feet and the other is 47 feet by 4 feet. In March 2007, I spread chicken manure and tilled both gardens. How often should I add manure, and should I till each season?

Answer: The best way to determine if you need to add more organic matter is to have your soil tested. One test they can run will give you the percentage of organic matter in your soil. Organic matter is not part of the routine test through the extension office, so you have to ask for it specifically.

Once your organic matter level gets too high, you can cut back on tilling in more manure. However, you could still top dress with small amounts as an organic fertilizer.

You can also get soil tested through several area garden centers and through a private lab at the Chesterfield County Airport Industrial Park called A&L Lab.
Richard Nunnally is a freelance writer and host of WCVE's monthly gardening show, "Virginia Home Grown." Questions can be sent to or P.O. Box 3690, Chester, VA 23831.