I am trying this too, but for a different reason:
We have a clump of young cedar trees (from 6 to 15 feet in height) serving as a screen. The trees will eventually grow too large and we will have to remove them. I plan to gradually take the larger ones out first and let the smaller ones grow a bit longer. Meanwhile, I hope to establish a new crop of seedlings in place, but without competition from the larger trees' root systems.
So, I have dug holes in the soil around the larger existing cedars. Into those holes I placed 5 gallon pots, each one containing a two year old cedar seedling. These can grow in the pots for a couple of years underneath and in very close proximity to the canopy of the larger existing trees, but without competition because they are isolated within their pots.
Then, in 2 or 3 years (before the root systems of the younger trees get root bound) I will cut down the larger of the cedars. Once that's done, I will expose most of the sides of the 5 gallon plastic pots and slice them down the side walls, removing most of the plastice sides and the bottoms of the pots without disturbing the young cedars' root system. The young cedar can then continue to grow in place, without the set back of being transplanted.
I hope this works. Maybe it would be easier to start from scratch once the older trees are cut?
PK
