How much should I realistically be watering this thing? North Texas clay soil.

I've got a bubbler at the base and plan to run an hour, twice per week, think that'll do it?

Neil Sperry radio show will give you an ideal answer after asking a few questions - take notes!

Depends on bubbler flow. They can be 0.25 gpm all the way to like 2.5 gpm

not sure i bet it's ..5 GPM

ChoppinDs40 said:

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not sure i bet it's ..5 GPM

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That's a big ass tree. 2 hrs per week on a 0.5 won't be enough. Maybe add a couple days. Obviously in DFW we get rain one day per week this time of year so that'll take care of that one day. I'm not an arborist or landscaper so I will defer to others on timing. Don't want you to get mad at me when your tree struggles

Picture? I got my mom a 100-gallon Elm and it's looking so mature and established now. Wouldn't know we got it planted in 2021 or so.

Nice! Good caliper size already!

https://www.news-journal.com/features/columnists/sperry/sperry-new-tree-plantings-require-adequate-amount-of-water/article_951ddc88-9a4b-11ec-9a88-5fd1dc0a3aee.html

Get a Treegator slow watering bag. That way you know how many gallons you're putting on the tree and it's very slow release.

https://www.amazon.com/Treegator-Original-Release-Watering-Trees/dp/B0006GT6C6?th=1

Used this to support a 200 gallon Live Oak after planting.

For the first few weeks, try and drown it. Keep it wet

200-gallon. Nice! Would love to see what that looks like!
Want to do something similar when we build.

Bubbler is 1gpm, just measured it. So an hour a couple times a week should work I think.

winmck said:

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For the first few weeks, try and drown it. Keep it wet

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ChoppinDs40 said:

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Who did your fence? Nice job there...

Builder. We're in a pretty new neighborhood.

I've had good success with the Tree I-V product to do some deeper watering below the surface.

https://treeiv.com/ but I purchased on Amazon a few years ago when the price was a little less. I just got the DIY 4-pack.

I just used my own Home Depot/Lowes buckets and drilled holes for the stakes.

Well, have fun with the leaf litter

Do wut

ChoppinDs40 said:

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I literally have that exact same playset. Costco?

Maybe? Kidcraft brand. Made/shipped from dallas.

Live oak leaves are a PITA when they drop. They have a waxy surface that keeps them from breaking down quickly, so unless you bag them, they're not going anywhere. If you go to a wooded park and look under live oaks, they've choked off everything below them with leaf litter. It helps them retain moisture in the soil, but it also chokes off grasses and other plants to eliminate competition. Mulching them with a mower can help break them down, but even the pieces can take a long time to decompose. The best way to handle it is bagging them.

Gotcha. Yeah I knew that. I've got another one in the back and had them in yards growing up. Just mulch when you mow and then bag a few times in spring when they do their bigger drop. NBD.

But it makes really good garden cover.

MS08 said:

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200-gallon. Nice! Would love to see what that looks like!
Want to do something similar when we build.

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I'd have to look on an old PC to find a picture. We had it planted in ~2009 when living in CS. One guy dug the hole by hand and used a walk behind skid loader to bring it to the backyard.

Bought it at Martha's Bloomers in Navasota. I believe they acquired the big trees from a Houston garden show or something. It was around $1,000 then but worth it to catch up to the neighborhood.

We moved away in 2012 but the satellite pics looks like it's canopy covers almost 3/4 of the backyard.

Did something similar when we moved back to the Midwest but had that one dug with a massive tree spade (90" diameter spade and 8-10" caliper tree) and relocated from the nursery. Worth every dollar both times.