Expert: Tom Alonzo - 10/7/2009

Question
September last year I collected 600+ Hickory Nuts with the intent to implement them into a landscape project.  I packaged them in bags of wet peat 55 a bag) to temporarily store them.  Needless to say, the owner of the project didn't want to go forward and one year later the roots look spectacular (4 - 8 inches long and healthy).  The roots were intertangled but easily isolated.  Many are straight, many are corky, and others are short.  Now that the cold season is coming and the stratification has already happened, do they have a chance in the ground now?  Can they be containerized?

Answer
Hi Mark,
Thanx for your question.  If you can get the seedlings into the ground now and give them a good mulch, most of them should be able to make it through the winter.  Yes, you can conatinerize them and then when dormant, store them in a dark, cold garage or shed and water them once a week.  I hope this helps.
Tom