Christmas Tree
Planting
Before beginning the actual
planting process, one of the two
dimensions of the tree locations is
established. In mathematics, these
would be referred to as Cartesian,
or rectangular, coordinates. The
cross marks seen in the picture are typically parallel to the short side of the
field. Note that three marks are made simultaneously by the disks on the
boom.
Because the marking disks are mounted at an
angle (to their direction of travel), they create
a miniature furrow as they cross the freshly
cultivated field. The planting machine will
travel perpendicular to these marks and
provide the second coordinate of the tree
locations.
Since each set of three cross marks is based on
the previous set, the potential for error accumulation is significant. To
minimize the error, marking actually begins in the middle of the field. A
string line is used to guide the first pass.
This implement was custom
designed and built for planting
trees at Shady Pond. It is a
semiautomatic device that
includes a coulter wheel (like a
giant pizza cutter), a planting
boot, packing wheels and row
markers. All of these
components can be seen in the
picture to the right. The photo
shows the machine being
hooked-up in preparation for its trip to the field. Note that the plant boxes are
stored upside down on their support structure.
The coulter slices the soil, cutting
any embedded debris. The planting
boot opens the soil so that the roots
of the little trees can be placed in
the ground. And the packing wheels
close the furrow and compact the
soil around the small plants. Finally
the row markers locate the next
succeeding row to be planted.
To most, preparing
containerized trees for
planting seems brutal. But at
Shady Pond the loss of even a
single tree is rare. Since the
tiny trees are usually root
bound in the pot, the root
mass is gently pounded against the wagon tires. This disturbs the roots and
signals the plant that it is no longer constrained by the pot wall...It's time to
start growing again.
The entire operation requires a four (4) person
crew; a tractor driver, two planters who ride
on the machine, and a checker. The checker
hand plants trees that may have been skipped,
verifies the tree location and ensures the
proper soil compaction. Tree planting at
Shady Pond is done in early February. The
trees are planted in a checker board pattern at
the rate of 500 per hour.
The trick is to get the crew to plant them with
the green part up!