hi pat ...

i cant grow this plant out my way ... killed a couple .... i suspect winter wind and sun as the issue ...

conifers... trees.. in pots... are very tricky ... to winter over .... i suggest you plant it ...

but since its been fluctuating into the high 80 for the last week ... can i convince you to wait a week or two ...

just place the pot where the pot stays out of sun ... i dont care about the greenery ...

you could even dig a hole.. and put the pot and all in the hole ... and then come back in a few weeks and properly plant the plant ...

but do keep in mind... if you hold it in the pot... that it does NOT need to be watered.. in the pot.. like annuals.. one good wetting ought to be enough for a week or two ...

see link for planting guide

any trees can be planted 6 to 8 weeks prior to ground freeze ... but that is not sept .. in mi ... lol .. i hope to have my potted plants planted by mid oct ... ground freeze is usually somewhere between thsgvg and new years... in SE MI ...

i am sure that all raises more ???s ... have at it ... and i hope our friends chime in ...

ken

ps: a 4 foot conifer.. in a pot.. is probably going to need root surgery .... these are fairly aggressive growers... leading to such ..... see if you can find some old posts in that regard.. or do a new post not addressed only to me about such .... you could also pull it form the pot.. snap some pix.. and shove it back in the pot.. to get some good info ... rather than us guessing about it all until planting day ...

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Zone 5 with prolonged cold will kill them unless tucked in close on the south side in it's own Zone 6. micro-climate.

A 4 ft. in a 3 gal. pot...check for being root bound.

Good luck,

Dave

Thank you, Ken and Dave.

Okay, I'm going to wait a week or two to plant. It's 80-something outside right now.

I have never understood the fall-planting thing. How can roots grow when the ground is cold or frozen? I just don't get it. Too much Prussian stubborn in my old head.

Pat