Transplanting Alders
JD77
Joined: Oct-10-2003
Location: Western Oregon
Posted: Oct-10-2003 at 1:56pm
I have a chance to move/save a few small alders. I have a place for them in my yard, but have little clue how to move them. They are small, less than 3 feet in height. Can anyone help with this? I'd hate for them to be wasted.
LisaA
Joined: Aug-14-2003
Location: Oregon, Greater Portland Metro
Posted: Oct-10-2003 at 2:50pm
Are you referring to Red Alder (Alnus rubra)? If so, you can move seedlings under 4' tall according to Grow Your Own Native Landscape, a publication from WSU, Thurston County, Native Plant Salvage Project. They have a great website with more info but I can't seem to get the page to respond at present. I'll try again later and post the link for you.
As for transplanting them, you can move them now but it would be better if you can wait until they are dormant (leaves fallen, branches bare) and dig as large a root ball as possible.
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Gardening in Sunset Zone 6, USDA Zone 8.
"If you are not killing plants, you are not really stretching yourself as a gardener."
~ J. C. Raulston
LisaA
Joined: Aug-14-2003
Location: Oregon, Greater Portland Metro
Posted: Oct-10-2003 at 10:25pm
The temporary glitch is gone. Here's the website I mentioned above (the book above comes from the same folks). WSU Red Alder info
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Gardening in Sunset Zone 6, USDA Zone 8.
"If you are not killing plants, you are not really stretching yourself as a gardener."
~ J. C. Raulston
WalesWoman
Joined: Oct-17-2003
Location: Sunset Zone
Posts: 9
Posted: Oct-27-2003 at 8:47pm
You will die laughing I think over this, but red alders are another indestructable plant/tree. We go out and just pull them up and stick them in some dirt, usually a soggy spot and they more than doubled their size since last year. I do not mean dug, I mean tug and pull. Not very nice, but effective when I'm looking for free stuff for the yard and forgot my shovel. I trimed the lower branches this summer and stuck the branches in some mud and they are growing too. I'm trying to block a "hole" in the trees between us and our neighbors and these 2 foot saplings I planted a year ago are well over 6 ft.
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USDA zone 7, Sunset zone A-3?
Wanda
Joined: Aug-15-2003
Location: Puget Sound corridor
Posted: Oct-28-2003 at 7:55am
I heard a story about a guy who was building a house and needed a temporary power pole so he took one of his downed alders, stripped the limbs totally off it and stuck it in the ground and strung his wiring. It started growing. I don't know if the story is true but it came from a reliable source and I believe it. Alders are almost impossible to kill in our mushy, clayey soil. But if you want it to look pretty, I'd follow Lisa's advice and transplant carefully - you might not want to create an Alder "bush" by hurting the main leader. By the way, these trees fix nitrogen in the soil. Have fun transplanting! -Wanda
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