I have a few bare root seedlings coming mid to late March. I suspect it would be a week or two before they are all planted. What do you think my best bets for storage? I was thinking about laying twenty or so on their sides in an old damp cake pan inside a refrigerator. I'm not above putting some damp soil in the pan. My guess is this would keep the buggers dormant. The other choice is heeling them in inside a few large pots filled with soil but I will have a more difficult time convincing anyone to let me put them in the fridge lol. Am I correct scion wood gets treated this way? Any ideas?
What kind of plants are they Mark, and exactly what size? Seedlings will be different from scoinwood in that the roots will dry out faster if you can't keep the humidity perfect. I know some use sawdust for heeling in, and I've had good success with barely damp sphagnum moss (not peat moss) in a very cool, but not freezing garage.
Hello Tom, thanks for reading. They are mostly Metasequoia two year seedlings. Advertised at 6 to 12 inches (15 to 30 centimeters). They are from a company in zone 5 Pennsylvania so you'd think they would be properly dormant during shipping. They are to be split between a few different locations and I know between the job and the new kid it will probably take me a week or two to get everything planted. A few years back I received a foot tall fella from the Arbor Day group. It was the first tree I ever planted and has done well so I expect some success. Tom, do you think heeling them in a couple pots largely filled with the sphagnum moss would be my best bet?
I don't have much experience overwintering that type of tree, but I would probably try sawdust myself. :)
