Any tips on getting sea buckthorn established?

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posted 13 years ago

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I planted many sea buckthorn plants from seed this season and got great sprouting results, but have had much difficulty keeping them to stay alive. If anyone has experience with these plants I would appreciate some pointers. I know that since they fix nitrogen they don't like to be fertilized and they like well-drained soil, but that is the extent of my sea buckthorn knowledge.

tel jetson

steward

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Location: woodland, washington

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posted 13 years ago

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I haven't started any from seed, but I've transplanted twenty or so. while they are very tolerant of drought once they're established, they like a lot of water early on. I lost a few early in my sea buckthorn career because I figured they would do fine without water from the get go.

there's also a chance that you're missing the mutualist microörganisms that need to colonize the roots before nitrogen fixation can occur.

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Eric Toensmeier

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posted 13 years ago

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Mine just never took off and I ended up replacing them. I would have thought that a species with such an aggressive reputation would have been easier to get going. They don't seem to like compacted clay soil.

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John Suavecito

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posted 13 years ago

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They need full sun and space to grow actively. Then they will often become aggressive. They will die in shade. I put mine in pots.
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Check out Redhawk's soil series: https://permies.com/wiki/redhawk-soil

Paulo Bessa

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Location: Portugal (zone 9) and Iceland (zone 5)

posted 13 years ago

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My seedlings seem to resent lack of full sunshine, or irregular watering (too much causes root rot, too little and they dry)

I had a few of them, only 3 are still alive. They refuse to take off, just like chenopodiums, maybe after a while they will. Might miss microorganisms in soil.

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