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Febraury 5
The following content will be used for items 1 - 3. Here is an article about planting apple trees. Read the article. Then answer the questions.
Planting Information for Apple Trees 
Questions Materials needed:
• One-year-old apple tree saplings
• Gardening gloves
• Small digging tools
• Shovels
• Pruning shears
• Wood stakes: six feet long, two inches in diameter
• Plastic ties from the garden store (never use wire, which can cut the tree)
• Bags of mulch and fertilizer
Best time of year to plant:
• Early spring, in the North
• Fall, in the South
Best place to plant saplings:
• An area in full sun is best; some shade is okay.
• Plant trees 20 feet apart.
• On a high or flat surface.
• Not in a gully, where they can get waterlogged.
• Not in a "frost-pocket," which is a low-lying place where cold air collects.
How to plant saplings:
1. Dig a hole for each sapling twice the diameter of and one foot deeper than its root ball.
2. Make the soil really crumbly.
3. Keep the tree's root ball slightly moist, until you're ready to plant.
4. Loosen the ties from the covering around the root ball, but do not remove the
burlap covering from the root ball.
5. Place the sapling in the hole.
6. Add soil, compost, and fertilizer.
7. Occasionally, apply water as you fill the hole—this removes air pockets.
8. After the tree is planted, tamp the soil gently and soak the area a final time.
9. After the final soaking, fill any holes with more soil and compost.
10. Build a small mound around the filled-in hole, using excess soil so that water will collect
toward the roots.
11. Add a layer of mulch three inches thick around the diameter of the tree. Don't let the mulch
touch the tree's trunk.
12. Place the six-foot-long wood stake next to the tree. The stake should be two feet into the
ground with four feet of the stake above the ground.
13. Fasten the stake to the trunk of the tree with plastic ties.
14. Prune limbs where advised. (This will encourage the tree to grow during the summer.)
15. IMPORTANT: Check with a garden center or research the Internet for proper pruning
techniques.
How do you maintain a planted apple tree?
• Soak the soil around the tree with water once a week—except during the rainy season.
• Replenish the mulch every few weeks.
• Keep the soil around the tree weeded.
Next Page »
• One-year-old apple tree saplings
• Gardening gloves
• Small digging tools
• Shovels
• Pruning shears
• Wood stakes: six feet long, two inches in diameter
• Plastic ties from the garden store (never use wire, which can cut the tree)
• Bags of mulch and fertilizer
Best time of year to plant:
• Early spring, in the North
• Fall, in the South
Best place to plant saplings:
• An area in full sun is best; some shade is okay.
• Plant trees 20 feet apart.
• On a high or flat surface.
• Not in a gully, where they can get waterlogged.
• Not in a "frost-pocket," which is a low-lying place where cold air collects.
How to plant saplings:
1. Dig a hole for each sapling twice the diameter of and one foot deeper than its root ball.
2. Make the soil really crumbly.
3. Keep the tree's root ball slightly moist, until you're ready to plant.
4. Loosen the ties from the covering around the root ball, but do not remove the
burlap covering from the root ball.
5. Place the sapling in the hole.
6. Add soil, compost, and fertilizer.
7. Occasionally, apply water as you fill the hole—this removes air pockets.
8. After the tree is planted, tamp the soil gently and soak the area a final time.
9. After the final soaking, fill any holes with more soil and compost.
10. Build a small mound around the filled-in hole, using excess soil so that water will collect
toward the roots.
11. Add a layer of mulch three inches thick around the diameter of the tree. Don't let the mulch
touch the tree's trunk.
12. Place the six-foot-long wood stake next to the tree. The stake should be two feet into the
ground with four feet of the stake above the ground.
13. Fasten the stake to the trunk of the tree with plastic ties.
14. Prune limbs where advised. (This will encourage the tree to grow during the summer.)
15. IMPORTANT: Check with a garden center or research the Internet for proper pruning
techniques.
How do you maintain a planted apple tree?
• Soak the soil around the tree with water once a week—except during the rainy season.
• Replenish the mulch every few weeks.
• Keep the soil around the tree weeded.
