About Our Plants
All trees and plants are bare-rooted (except where noted).
All fruit and nut trees are well-rooted, ¼" to ⅞" in diameter.
No mature heights are listed for fruit trees; your pruning method and the rootstock determine the final height of your tree. Other plants list approximate mature height, or height x width.
For fruit trees and berries, the exact dates of peak ripeness will vary from place to place.
The zone hardiness rating will aid you in determining whether a plant will be hardy for you. The average minimum temperature in your area determines your zone. All plants list the coldest hardiness zone. Your own soil conditions, microclimate and topography will be equally important in determining the best varieties for you.
Please note pollination requirements for fruits, nuts and berries. Some plants are self-pollinating, others require a second plant of the same type for pollination, and others require a second plant of a second variety.
We list the origin and parentage of cultivars and plants, as known.
The approximate size of the plant we will ship is in parentheses at the end.We strive to give you accurate information about all the plants we sell. If you notice inaccuracies, please let us know.
John Bunker, Laura Childs, Jacob Mentlik and Jen Ries wrote the plant descriptions.
We sell a number of plants that have long histories of traditional medicinal or culinary use. It’s up to you to educate yourself about the safety and efficacy of using plants for medicinal purposes. The statements in our catalog regarding traditional medicinal uses of plants have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The plants we sell are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Why bare-root plants?
At Fedco Trees, we know buying live plants is a commitment. There’s a lot of planning and consideration involved, and whether you’re looking to start a home orchard or spruce up your landscape with beautiful ornamentals, you’ll want to research which plants are right for you, your site and your management plan. One decision you’ll need to make is whether to buy bare-root or potted plants.
People have been trading or selling bare-rooted or field-grown trees for centuries. It is an easy way to transport woody plants, as long as they are dormant and the roots are kept moist and covered. Plastic pots revolutionized the nursery trade, allowing nurseries to expand into multi-season garden centers that could hold plants easily in soil after they break dormancy. Fedco chose to be part of the bare-root niche for a few reasons:
- Field grown, bare-rooted trees can be bundled, stored in bulk and distributed to customers at a much lower cost than if they were potted. Bare-root nurseries don’t need to buy in soil media or pots to hold each tree or invest in the storage space and labor of potting and tending to each pot. In turn, the retail costs of bare-rooted trees are 2-3 times cheaper than their potted equivalents.
- Growing plants in the field more closely simulates their natural habitat. Plants live in the full soil ecosystem for two growing seasons and benefit from rainfall, mycorrhizal activity and nutrient retention. As a result, the roots are often beefy. Many of our fruit trees and several shrubs would be heavily restricted if we placed them in a five gallon pot.
- We wash roots clean of all soil at harvest time and thus are able to fully inspect the roots for health and vigor before sending them out to our customers. This results in fewer pests or pathogens moving around from town to town.
- Bare-root plants aren’t root bound, which is always a risk with potted plants. Plant roots want to sprawl and there is only so much room in a pot.
To be clear, we love our garden centers and frequent them in the off season to feed our year-round plant hunger. Many are doing a great job of giving the plant ample time to establish in the pot but not too much time to become bound. It’s a tricky balance to do it right. We, too, sell some plants in pots such as our lingonberries and bearberries that have fine hairlike roots that do not handle well bare.
Consider bare-root as a healthy, economical option for filling your yard with plants!