ge1836 said:I have never planted anything at the required depth and yet things thrive.
I've had the same experience, Jo Ann. I typically go for the smallest viable rootball on plants... not for health reasons, but because digging a big hole in Louisiana soil is like creating a nice new swimming pool for your plant... even in raised beds! I also like being able to plant companion plants without having to worry about disturbing the roots of the established plants around the new ones. I think the recent push toward always purchasing larger plants is ill-advised because the plant has spent a longer time acclimating to a greenhouse or the climate where it was raised rather than adapting from an early age to the environment in which it will grow. Give me a one-gallon or smaller rose any day over a three-gallon! For most plants, I go for quart or smaller. The only exception to that has been when I plant slower-growing evergreen shrubs (like camellias) and trees.
With all that you have to go through to create your gardens, Jo Ann, they are even more of a marvel!!! I'm so impressed with what you have accomplished. =)
