[USCC] Compost and tree planting

[dmhill@aol.com]

 Michelle, et al

I did receive a response from the VP for Operations at the ANLA. As promised, the response is below:






The simple answer is "no."? ANLA does not invest in the research and
development of the "technical" aspects of growing or planting plants,
primarily because of the local nature of the processes, wide variations in
micro-environments, and the fact that the ideal very often conflicts with what
actually happens at the planting site.



?



Many times issues like these become a "battle of the
academics," and the industry gets caught in the crossfire when the
landscape architects and commercial project managers adopt and enforce
specifications that are not proven over the long term.? Generally, no "extreme" practice
proves out over time.? Folks with
practical knowledge in the field need to get involved in the debate to assure
that the theories don't trump business reality (e.g., landscape contractor
guarantees!).? If you encounter "bad
specs" or unrealistic theory (e.g., on the USCC listserve), you need to do
what you can to keep it real.



?



In the old days, local soils were not so bad, and there
wasn't much soil science anyway, so you just planted with what you had at hand,
maybe a few scoops of peat moss at most.?
Then there was a "movement" to provide plants with
high-performing soils in their micro-environment, so specs called for
"replacing" the existing soil with a highly modified soil mix.? Then it was discovered that heavily modified
"plant pits" held water and discouraged root growth beyond the pit
"boundary."? As far as I know,
the most generally accepted practice now is to "improve" the soil but
do not "replace" it - as the best compromise that would provide
nutrients and micro-organisms to a plant introduced into the landscape in the
short-term, while not creating a "bathtub" environment over the
long-term.? 



?



The real problems occur when you are dealing with
highly-disturbed building sites where there is no "soil" at all, and
the architect's specifications have been ignored throughout the construction of
the building, so the landscape contractor - the last one on the site - is left
with a mix of stone, asphalt, construction debris, including toxins, and clay.? If the specs call for little or no
modification of the soil, the contractor has no good choice at that point -
ignore the specs or bear increase costs that were not included in the bid.? The dream world collides with the real world,
and there is no uniform, national standard - no easy answer.



?



w



?



?



________________________



Warren A. Quinn, Esq., CAE



Vice President for Operations



American Nursery & Landscape Association 1000 Vermont
Ave., NW? Suite 300 Washington, DC 20005





 David Hill
CycleLogic
(301) 493-5180
www.mycyclelogic.com 


 

-----Original Message-----
From: Young, Michele <Michele.Young at sanjoseca.gov>
To: 'Compost Discussion List' <compost at mailman.cloudnet.com>
Sent: Thu, 27 Mar 2008 4:06 pm
Subject: [USCC] Compost and tree planting










Greetings to all,

In doing a presentation to our local urban forestry group, I was told that
they never recommend putting compost into the backfill hole when planting a
tree. This is because they feel that roots will not search outside of the
root ball area if there is "food" placed there.  I talked to them about
trenching and augering as a way of putting food into other zones, but they
were steadfast about no compost in the planting hole.

All of the planting guides that I have seen and used from the soil
perspective show a compost soil-blend at planting.  I would love to hear
from professionals out there about their experiences, and advice.  Please
check with your urban forestry folks to see if no compost is a common
recommendation, or just a local practice here in San Jose.

Conflicted in San Jose

Turn Over an Old Leaf - Compost!
 
Michele Young  
City of San Jose
Environmental Services Department
200 E. Santa Clara St.   Tower 10
San Jose,  CA  95113
Phone: (408) 975-2519
FAX: (408) 292-6212 

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