# Stressed Redwoods



## rsmproductions (Jan 5, 2008)

Greetings,

My garden railroad sits on a raised bed that spans the width of my backyard. In each corner we have planted 3 Aptos Blue Redwoods for privacy from the two-story houses on each side. The three trees on one side is noticeably more stressed and brown than the other side. I admittedly was bad at getting the watering system established for these trees quickly enough. This, coupled with the drought we have been experiencing has led to the poor look of the trees. 

I also think aside from the poor watering, the addition of my phase 2 of the railroad in this area have contributed to the poor look of the trees. 

So my question is do I have any hope of reviving these trees back to the greenness of the other side? I have left the dropped needles on the ground as a kind of mulch or covering to retain moisture. I have also added some deep watering pipes in the ground randomly around the outer canopy of the trees. And since we are not really having a winter here in the Central Valley of California I've upped the watering and begun spraying the trees at night to simulate moisture they would normally get from fog, etc. 

Any thoughts are very welcome..

Richard


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## SD90WLMT (Feb 16, 2010)

Get some "Ironite"..big box stores or WM garden dept. 

Helps feed plants and they grow better & Greener also.. 
Apply every couple of months. Follow directions on bag. Not expensive to buy. 

Definitely keep the water running to help recovery. .now is a great time to get a head start and help them before it gets too hot, increasing their stress. 

Good luck! 

Dirk


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## rsmproductions (Jan 5, 2008)

Thanks for the idea of Ironite. I've used the product before but on the lawn. I might even have some in my shed

Richard


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## rsmproductions (Jan 5, 2008)

I've been going out every other evening and spraying the trees by simulating rain...just trying to put some moisture on the needles. I also found my Ironite and put that around gave everything a good watering. So hopefully these fellows will start getting some relief.


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## SD90WLMT (Feb 16, 2010)

Good...make take a week or so!! 

Need to do the same on My trees here! 

Dirk. Never enough time......


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## HaBi Farm (Aug 28, 2011)

As a general rule it is better to water plants more thoroughly but less often. This encourages them to grow their roots deeper. 

You may need to really soak up the soil even further out than each tree's drip line. Otherwise the water you put on the tree will just get sucked up by the surrounding dry dirt. 

Spraying/misting them in the evenings to mimic moisture they would get from fog sounds like a really good idea. You can get mist emitters to go with drip irrigation systems, then let them run for however long is needed. Don't know how much your water use is restricted. 

the other Rodney


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

You mention that you have a raised bed, is this before or after the trees are planted? Are the trees in the raised section or did you build up the section around the trees? How mature are these? Years in the ground and what caliper/diameter is the tree? 

As for putting down Iron, I don't see what that will do for a tree. Its used for lawns when you have a low iron count, known by a soil sample. Typically its not needed. One thing that can effect the tree is the soil PH, though a Redwood is a resilient tree and grows almost anywhere. Ive recently planted a Dawn Redwood last year in my backyard. Try finding them here on the East Coast!


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