"Life wants to live"

“Life wants to live”.  I saw a thread where Joseph Lofthouse wrote that, and I couldn’t agree more.  I was thinking more about this the other day when I was planting trees.  Depending on the source, you will hear that you should plant trees a few inches higher than the surrounding landscape for good drainage, or you should plant trees in a depression to catch rainfall, or you should plant them at the same level they were when you bought them.  I’ve seen advice to plant the tree several inches deeper than it was in the pot so that if you get suckers, they are more likely from the point above the graft.  I’ve seen advice that says you should always amend your soil if it isn’t good before you plant your tree, and that you should never amend your soil so that the tree isn’t shocked when it hits soil that is worse than that in which it has been growing.  I’ve heard people say to mulch heavily to keep water in, and to mulch but not too heavily so you allow air to get in, and to mulch with plastic, or stones, or compost.  I’ve planted trees most of these ways and you know what I’ve found?  It doesn’t really matter.  Go to an area that is all sand and you’ll find trees growing.   Go to a place that is solid clay.  Go look at a rock cliff.  Look at a place that floods during monsoon, and bakes as hard as granite the rest of the year.  You will nearly always see trees growing.  Some will struggle, some will die.  Many won't.  In truly awful conditions this may not hold true, but few of us live in places this inhospitable.  I understand that a lot of this advice depends on the conditions where you live, but the bottom line for me, after quite a few years of planting and growing trees is just this.  Just plant trees.  Life wants to live.  What a truly wonderful sentiment.

I like that! Even if there might be some scientific evidence or first hand experience that supports the ability of certain species to thrive in certain environments, and vice/versa - your statements are encouraging.

People new to the scene (I would consider myself in that category) can be overwhelmed and even opt-out of planting certain things out of fear they will do something wrong.

If someone is planning to put in 100 trees that they just spent a portion of their life savings on, I can see why! But, for a lot of us your words represent what more of us should be doing on a smaller scale, and just give it a whirl.

After several years of seeing what does and doesn't work well in your particular conditions (and hopefully not too much $ lost), one will have the experience and confidence to take it further, or at least share what they've learned. Even if things turn out a failure it's time well spent on valuable lessons.

Patience and perseverance are two words I'm trying to do better at!

I apologize for the ramble, but you struck a chord

I live in a subdivision that used to be a riverbed. The river/stream/creek was dammed and forced underground to make room for the subdivision (and then they wonder why the aquifers are draining, but that's another topic) but under our feet is the 100 year old seed bank for all the plants that used to exist on the water of that stream. As my soil improves I'm starting to see things that I've never seen before, just popping up. This week it's what appears to be sacred datura, or jimson weed.

Indeed, life wants to live. And it's patient.