Today’s Edible Question is about moving to a new site with existing trees. In today’s day and age settling in one spot for decades seems to lone gone tradition. People are constantly moving from city to city and house to house. Whether you are going into a larger house, downsizing, or even going tiny, the same questions still arise.
It’s common to hear these similar questions. “I just got this great job opportunity two hours away, what can I do with my existing fruit trees when I move?” Or it is often phrased like this, “I am moving to a new property next year. I am building a house there and want to get fruit trees, can I plant fruit trees now?” Let’s think this thru together and figure out what makes sense for these people on the move.
Financial Investment
First let’s consider the money involved. Unless you grew your own trees from seed or bartered with someone chances are you invested some money into your trees. Small trees can be as cheap at $15-30 or as expensive as $100-200 depending on the type and size of the tree. I would not recommend getting a large $200 tree because they normally don’t transplant well but more on that later. Depending on how many trees you have, say you have 5 trees you bought for $20 each. This means you have invested $100 into them plus the time you spent planting and caring for them. What makes fruit trees beautiful and frustrating at the same time is that a mature fruit tree is priceless. Yes it is often impossible to put a price tag on a 20 foot tall apple tree because 1, they aren’t for sale and 2, if they were they would be way out of my budget!
Back to the monetary side of things, what will it cost to buy all new trees at your new house? If you only had 2 young trees at your old house you should be able to replace them with under a $50-100 investment. If you planted a backyard orchard consisting of 20 fruit trees 3 years ago the money starts adding up quickly. The cost to go out and buy all new 3-4 year old ‘ready to fruit’ trees at your new site will be costly. Now that you have considered the dollar investment involved lets more on to other considerations.
Tree Size
Let’s look at the size of your trees. Are they 2-4 feet tall with less than an inch diameter trunk? Or are your trees 8-10 feet plus with large root systems and thick trunks? Small trees can be potted up and transplanted with great survivability rates. If you have large trees they probably aren’t going to make the move with you. If this is the case for you I would highlight these trees in the marketing material for your home sale. Showcasing several mature fruit trees attractively sited in your yard will add value to your house. Nothing says home like a few well maintained fruit trees.
Season
Next let’s consider the time of year. Are you going to be moving in the middle of summer, the dead of winter, or somewhere in between? Depending on where you are in the country chances are you can transplant your trees while they are dormant. If you move anytime between late fall through spring you will be able to transplant your dormant trees. Once the leaves fall off of your fruit trees, carefully dig them out. Getting as much of the root system as possible will ensure your tree will succeed at your new house. Once the roots are dug out, lightly shake or rinse off all the soil and package the roots in slightly damp newspaper (too wet and the roots could root). Now that all your trees are dug store them in a cool, dark place until they are ready to be planted.
Transplanting young trees is best. I have had great success transplanting trees up to 4-5 feet tall. You will be surprised at how small of a space a dormant tree takes up. I have moved 20 three foot tall fruit trees in a compact sedan with plenty of extra room to spare. If you have young trees but you are moving when the tree isn’t dormant you can still transplant them. Transplanting a tree that is actively growing needs to be done with great care. The entire root ball, soil and all will have to be potted or balled to enable successful transplanting. As you can imagine trees transplanted like this will take up a considerable amount of room in your trailer or truck bed. Stay tuned for more on transplanting in pots in a later article.
Time
Recently I did an interview with Aust from Homesteady. Check out the video of us planting a few fruit trees at his farm. He jokes about the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago and the second best time is today. You have probably heard that one a lot but it rings true every time someone contacts me about fruit trees. In today’s world of immediacy and instant everything trees buck that trend. Everyone wants a mature fruit tree that yields bushels of fruit but unless you planted your tree years ago you will have to wait for those yields.
Yes young fruit trees seem so impossibly tiny that they will never bear fruit but given time and care they can bear massive rewards. Small trees can be successfully transplanted and moved many times. I have moved young trees with me from house to house until they got too large to move. If you are lucky enough to own a piece or property where you know you will be moving to I suggest planting fruit trees on that property now. If your site is prone to harsh weather conditions (think drought, high winds, ice storms, monsoons, or blazing hot summers) and you will be an absentee landlord for a while you might have to think twice about what to plant and when. If you are in a mild climate with average rainfalls you can go ahead and plant now, by the time you move there your trees will be that much larger and maybe already bearing fruit. A case against planting young trees at a property you will one day move to is that they will need some attention and care particularly just after planting. In mild climates this can be as little as a few times a year.
If you are an apartment dweller and believe you can’t plant trees now, think again. Options include starting fruit seeds and growing them in pots on a balcony or patio. Potted dwarf fruit trees can fit on even the smallest patio. With regular pruning they can be trained to stay short and compact. You can even try growing a few small fruit bushes instead of trees. The footprint is much smaller and berry bushes can produce fruit sooner than full sized fruit trees. You will be amazed at the yield a few berry bushes can give.
Now what?
The idea of breaking down all the options of fruit tree transplanting is to make us think. Will transplanting your trees be the best thing to do for you? Will you buy a few new trees at your new home instead? Maybe leaving your fruit trees at your existing house increases its resale value? Does starting a few small trees, berry bushes, or even seeds in a pot before you land at your forever home make sense? All these items are up for discussion and debate based off of each ones individual circumstance.
Hopefully laying out these options will help people make moving with fruit trees a little easier. Have you made a move with fruit trees in tow? Did you plant a new property ahead of moving to it? If so we would love to hear from you. Leave us a note in the comments or email us at northeastedible@gmail.com.