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River Birch

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From: Larry Hurley City: Armstrong, IL
We planted a Heritage River Birch in late April. I deep watered it when needed but we have had a very wet spring. Last week we had our first weather in the 90's but our ground was still moist. This week the leaves have turned yellow and are dropping. Is it possible more watering is needed. I used root sprouting fertilizer the first month but only once since then. Thank you
	Extension Message From: Jay Hayek Extension Specialist, Forestry Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences jhayek@illinois.edu
Greetings Larry: My initial thought is that your tree may be receiving too much water, despite the fact that newly planted trees need plenty of water. The soil should be moist, not super-saturated after watering. Do not maintain the planted tree in a soil-moisture saturated state as your tree's roots require oxygen. Don't worry about the fertilizer, a newly planted tree doesn't require soil amendments for establishment. In fact, stay away from fertilizer for a couple years on newly planted trees.
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