I would think now was a good time to plant. I an in zone 8b so, really, I should keep my mouth shut since all my winters are mild in your thinking. I f you keep the pots outside mulched , I would think that they would be happier in the ground that was mulched.

What is the winter forecasted to be in your area this winter with a La Niña. That might be a factor. I think it is saying slightly above normal for your area unless you are in western Maryland, then you are normal..

They’re all around 5’ tall.

I feed them this:

I plant all year round here in Zone 7 in north GA, but we hardly get any snow and the ground never freezes. (I just planted 4 trees and am about to install a lot of shrubs over the next two weeks.)

I say put 'em in if you know where you want them, and let their roots grow all winter. Of course, you'll probably want to hear more from someone in the mid-Atlantic or lower northeast :)

One thing I have heard that you probably already know is that cold air can penetrate newly loosened soil easier, so just be aware of that if you plant them and a hard freeze is scheduled to come in.

I would plant them now and mulch heavily to reduce frost heave.

ryanga is right about cold penetration & so heavy mulch like cecily says is your friend.

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whaas_5a(5A SE WI)

These plants are only 2 years from seed?

What the hell are you feeding them! Lol
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LOL whaas. I'd already asked him about that in a private message based on some of his other pictures. Hairmetal's plants are living it up!

Anyhow I think for these hardy deciduous items, now is still ok.

Yeah, I'm mostly impressed with the lateral branching!

The last Nyssa I grew was that size at 7 years old.

The fastest growing seedling I have ever had was a Acer truncatum. It grew from a 6" seedling to a 7' tall tall tree that season. It was actually scary. I think I gave it to Matt Deates on here.

I'm starting to appreciate non grafted plants more and more.

I collected the seed locally from some trees in the woods. It’s siblings didn’t branch like that, (they did reach similar height, but as whips), it’s why I kept this one.

I planted the others in a local park (with permission).

Nice I really like what you doing here. Good quality plants that you get to be pride in and you're spreading the love in the community.

when I was moving I called up the village and they sent one of their parks and Recs guy over and he took some of the trees to plant in the parks.