Irrigating young potted trees

We’ve had another unfortunately dry winter, and irrigation season will start sooner than we hoped. Irrigating young trees is one of the most difficult tasks in orchard establishment, as new transplants have an extremely limited root system and can dry out quickly. Our colleagues in the Sacramento Valley have written a few articles on the subject, including a great photo-series showing that water that does not land directly in the root zone of newly planted potted trees does not sub into the soilless substrate!

Potted tree irrigation after planting: Getting the first year right

Missing the target: Why you should irrigate potted trees directly onto potting media