Weed suppressants and moisture conservation
Mulches will help to reduce weed growth providing the correct type is used the most popular and effective is bark applied to a depth of 50mm. A mulch will also help retain additional moisture in the soil around the roots where its needed. Other decorative mulches are available like coloured wood chips and pea gravel.

Watering
A plants requirements of moisture will vary upon plant type, time of year soil type, size of plant as a guide we recommend that during the growing season newly planted trees and shrubs should be irrigated following any one month without appreciable rainfall. This is particularly important for prestige schemes and amenity trees and shrubs in exposed positions.

As a guide for reasonable growth to be achieved schemes should be irrigated every one or two weeks during the growing season in the first year moistening the soil so that the rooting depth of soil is saturated. The amount of water applied will vary dramatically according to soil type and structure, as a guide a tree of 4m will require at least 50lts and a small transplant or shrub between 5 and 20lts soils which are very freely draining should be irrigated more frequently and with less volume.

Containerised and root balled stock should be monitored closely to ensure that they never dry out, as it can be very hard to re-wet dried peat.

Over watering is wasteful both of water and other resources and will only serve to leach nutrients away from the plants roots which can then starve the plant of nutrition.

Spring Maintenance
We recommend that stakes and ties are checked to prevent damage to the plants and where ties are used that they are slackened to ensure that they do not cut into the stem. Stakes can normally be removed within three years of planting.

Feeding
The application of a slow release fertiliser is always beneficial in the spring as the plants are starting to flourish.