Article Highlights
Root Feeders prevent run-off and are an effective way to fertilize trees
The two types of Root Feeders are Hose-fed and Gravity-fed
With Gravity-Fed Root Feeders, you can water multiple trees at once
You are more likely to water each week with a method that is FAST and EFFICIENT
Compare commercial products below or at www.sayegrow.com/wateringmethods
Why is a Root Feeder Better?
Eliminates Wasteful Run-Off
The most frustrating part of watering a tree is watching water pool up and stream off into the yard. This problem can be especially bad with a sloped yard, but it also happens on flat surfaces. A root feeder eliminates this problem using a metal or plastic injector that provides a mechanical flow path directly to the roots.
Deep Watering
Any type of surface watering can leave you wondering how deep the water penetrated. Insufficient surface watering does not soak deep enough and promotes root growth closer to the surface. A healthy root system should develop between 4" and 18" below the surface. Since root feeders are forcing water in at the lower levels, you can be assured of deep watering each time. This gives a tree improved drought hardiness and desired anchor strength as it matures.
Water Soluble Nutrients Easily Added
Some root feeders offer the ability to fertilize while watering. If the water is going deep, so are the nutrients.
Types of Root Feeders
HOSE-Fed Root Feeders
There are several different styles of hose-fed root feeders but feature-wise they are quite similar. Attach a hose, walk to the tree, poke it in, and turn it on. It's simple, efficient, waters deep, and you can usually fertilize through them if desired. If you have several trees to water, however, you will need plenty of time.
Hose-fed feeders are a "one at a time" method, and will require a minimum of 5 minutes per tree. Even after 5 minutes you may be asking yourself "how long is enough?" You really don't know how much water actually reached the root well. You should also remember that remotely located trees cannot be reached with a pressurized hose and will need another watering method.
GRAVITY-Fed Root Feeders
This type includes a reservoir that can usually be filled with any source of water. The water drains into the root well of the tree naturally, using only the force of gravity. Drain time is determined by the percolation rate of the soil, which varies with soil type. A gravity-fed system provides the necessary deep, efficient watering, but it also gives you more.
Since the reservoir holds a known volume of water, so you no longer have to ask "how long?" and "how much?". The Tree I.V. brand root feeder uses a 5-gallon reservoir that takes less than 1 minute to fill using a normal garden hose. At only 1 minute per tree, it's easy to see that you can water 5, 10, or even 50 trees in a fraction of the time. Another unique feature offered by Tree I.V. is that the reservoirs can be filled, transported to remote trees, and attached for instant watering.
Problems to Watch For
Inadequate Watering
Roots develop where moisture is available. This is why light surface watering can be harmful, promoting shallow root systems while starving the deeper roots. This type of development leaves the tree at risk of winter injury, summer heat stress, and wind damage.
Over-Watering
Too much water can be just as bad as too little water. It may not seem intuitive, but tree roots actually need to breathe. Excess moisture pushes oxygen from the soil, and without a drying period, roots will slowly begin to die. One symptom of too much water is the unexpected lightening or yellowing of leaves starting on the lower part of the tree and slowly move outward. Other symptoms may include wilting of young shoots or brittle green leaves. Watering once per week is usually adequate, but never water if the ground is already wet.
Excess Mulch
Most experts agree that proper mulch depth is 3-4 inches, enough to shield the soil from sunlight and control competing grasses. Deeply piled mulch is commonly used to hold water to speed up the process, but there are three flaws with this technique. 1) Mulch does not stop water-runoff, 2) roots will develop above the soil, and 3) mulch around the trunk flare can cause trunk rot and eventual death.
Facts about New Trees
Establishment Time
It will take some judgment on your part, but tree growth is a good indicator. Once your new tree has doubled in size, you can be sure that the root system has taken a good foothold. This may take 3 to 5 years.
Quantity per Application
Newly planted trees with less than a 2” trunk diameter will have a root well of about 5 cubic ft (24" dia. x 20” deep). Since typical topsoil will saturate at about one gallon of water per cubic foot, it should only take 5 or 6 gallons to soak the root well. It could be wasteful to exceed 10 gallons on trees of this size, but be sure that you are efficiently applying at least 5 gallons.
Choose a Tree Watering Method that is FAST
Planting new trees is quite often a very enjoyable experience. When finished, you get to wash your hands, step back, and imagine how they will grow with you into the future. Unfortunately, your work is not done, in fact, the hardest part is just beginning. In general terms these new trees will need to be watered once a week. The hardest part will be getting yourself out there to do the watering each week. We're all busy, and have a natural tendency to procrastinate. If watering takes too long, it won't get done.
Here is some important advice: Figure out how you are going to manage this weekly chore of watering your new trees. Experience says that the single most important aspect is speed. Find a method where you can finish quickly, and your chances of sticking with it over the next few years increases DRAMATICALLY. Good luck and have fun!