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Fox Hollow Nursery

http://www.foxhollownursery.com/html/how_we_grow.html

How We Grow Our Trees

We believe that we have a unique value proposition in growing large Japanese Maples for use in the Southeast. First of all we are located in the same geographic area that our plants will be planted. This means that our trees are already well acclimated for this region. Second we employ a number of growing procedures to develop the hardiest specimens possible and insure a robust root system for each tree.

We use grow bags (knit fabric containers) for our field-grown trees. A specialized grow bag encases the root ball of each of our field-planted trees. The grow bags primary purpose is to restrict the way in which the tree’s root system is created. As the plant’s roots reach the bag material the roots are naturally pruned and the root tips callous. Small feeder roots penetrate the fabric allowing the plant to take in moisture and nutrients. Root branching and bulbing increase the carbohydrates in the root structure and help with plant reestablishment. The grow bags keep roots from circling, creating a more robust and hardy root system. The smaller ball size created by the bags makes transporting and handling the trees easier. Two people can easily handle up to a 4 caliper tree without heavy equipment.

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