Get Your Garden Ready for Winter With This Checklist
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Teresa on Sep 03, 2017
Staking a tree that does not need it can do more harm than good. Movement of the trunk helps strengthen it by thickening it and giving it taper from bottom to top. Trunk movement also stimulates root growth. So although staked trees might grow taller faster than their un-staked counterparts, their trunks are weaker and their root systems are less developed.
When done incorrectly, staking further compounds a young tree’s problems. If a tree is tied to a stake too tightly, girdling can occur, weakening and even possibly killing the tree unless the problem is addressed in time. Movement of a tree above where it is tied too tightly to a stake, like movement of an un-staked trunk, results in a thicker trunk above the tie. This difference in thickness upsets smooth travel of water and nutrients up and down the developing trunk. Too tight a tie coupled with too rigid a stake can anchor a plant so firmly below the tie that a strong wind can actually blow off the top of the tree. Tying a tree too loosely to a stake also causes problems. The bark is continuously rubbed, resulting in wounds that may never heal properly.
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