Question
Nick, last month I asked a question about the yellowing and drooping of the leaves of my new nursery planted windmills. After I received your response, I pulled back the mulch from around the trunks and cut back on the water without results. You also mentioned loosening the clay soil, which I have not tried yet. Would the fact that when the trees were planted the holes were just big enough to hold the root ball contribute to my problem? The instructions on the container recommended making the holes twice the size of the root ball.

Answer
Hi Gary, yes it would make a real big difference, for what happens is the roots never break out of the ball they are in from the nursery container; when planting them, you need to loosen up the root ball so that the roots will permeate the surrounding soil after planting, and yes, the hole needs to be at least twice the size of the root ball, otherwise it forms a wall that also precludes the ball from breaking out. Once the hole is dug, the ball is placed in at the same dept that it was in the pot and the loose soil that was dug out, is backfill in around the ball and watered to remove any air pockets, then backfilled again, until it is up to the surface. This is the correct way to plant a tree or Palm. Nick