in my z5 .... ground thaw is around 4/1 .. last frost around 6/1

by experience.. i have found.. with totally dormant.. mail order trees

that my planting window ... for fail free planting is 4/1 thru 4/15 ... with each week thereafter adding to a potential failure ...

this give me 6 to 8 weeks of potential root growth .. BEFORE the heat of summer hits between 6/15 and july/august ...

and its not that freak few warm days that bother me.. its all about soil temps.. and when all the spring water is starting to be pulled out of the soil ... thats when problems begin ....

IMHO .... timing is absolutely the most important variable ... for the highest chance at success with the least aftercare ....

waiting until summer .. and planting fully leafed out trees from pots.. is just so problematic ....

if i end up with stock .. and i am running that far behind.. i have found i am better off.. sinking the entire pot in a location with no hot .. afternoon sun.. and then denuding the root mass in fall ... PRESUMING I HAVE A SOIL THAT WILL ALLOW DRAINAGE thru the pot ....

ken

Well, I probably start buying deciduous trees as early as December locally, but a lot of mail order companies won't ship out until January through March. That's the time when I do mail orders.

Then, for citrus, I'll buy them any time of the year except in mid and late summer.

As far as flowers and such, I usually look for clearance stuff, and you never really know what time of year something will be on sale.

Of course, I live in Florida. So, there's a bigger time window for planting here.

what i MEANT to say ...

is that i mail order most trees.... and no matter when they offer to send them... i demand they send them according to the specific timing mentioned in my first post ... 4/1 to 4/15 ... which is usually a couple weeks earlier than they would themselves ....

if i find any potted stock after about 5/1 .. i will hold it over for fall planting .... ESPECIALLY if it is already leafed out ...

one reason is that with my 5 acres .... i tend to forget about TLC .... you can plant later.. IF YOU CAN ADD THE EXTRA CARE for the summer ....

ken

What do you think about this,

I always wonder if planting some zone 3 hardy Larix laricina it wouldn't matter as much if I decided to plant it in December while planting a barely zone 6 tolerant Crape Myrtle (Lagerstroemia) in late September might be pushing it.

For bare-root trees, I typically order in September to lock in the varieties I want for delivery in January/February. This year it was 10 grafted Pecans and 25 Green Ash. Next year it will probably be pines.
For potted trees - I switched to raising my own from seed and usually transplant in fall depending on rainfall that year. Plan trips to collect desired seed.