In Spring, we packed thousands of tube-pack trees ready to courier to clients within the next few months, but summer has come and our remaining tube-packed trees have outgrown their small tube-packs. We, therefore, are out of stock of tube-packed trees. We do have large supplies of thriving young lucerne trees in individual 1-litre potting bags in stock.
Remember that lucerne trees have a very vigorous root system and want to grow deep down into the soil. This fast root growth means that lucerne trees should not remain in potting bags for more than a few months. We recommend that you shelter your young sapling until it reaches 40cm and then plant them in your lands. This growth takes about 4 months.
Please fill in the contact form on our Orders page to order your your trees.
Our spring lucerne tree seedlings in their bags are growing beautifully as the spring temperatures warm.
We currently have stocks of lucerne trees in bags that are between 15cm – 30 cm tall and they will be ready to plant out once they reach about 40cm tall in a month or so’s time. We also have stocks of trees in tube-packs for lighter courier costs.
You can see how tender and spindly these little saplings are. If you plant your trees when they are too small and young, they will be eaten as a quick little snack by any passing browser. Shelter your trees to grow to size and only plant them when they are taller and stronger. Protect your young trees from any animals for at least their first 18-months with good fencing and/or shade cloth. Please read all about how to plant your trees and what to put into the holes here – Planting Trees.
Also, you can nip the growth tips off these saplings to stimulate side-branching and prolific leaf development. Wait about 2 weeks after planting them out to “take” and settle, and then snip off the tips of each sapling. You’ll be amazed at how quickly they will flourish with new leaves and branches.
Order your trees now while stocks last. Unfortunately we may not export trees across international borders, but you can order seeds instead.
Winter is a perfect time to start your lucerne tree germination process and we have received a lot of interest and new orders. Recently a new client asked,
“Should I first plant my lucerne tree seeds into tube-packs (after seeing images on our blog and as an option in our ordering form) before then potting my seedlings into potting bags?”
Here’s my response ~
We only use tube-packs to courier clients our little lucerne trees so as to provide light-weight packaging, to reduce volumetric weight and therefore lower courier costs. A tube-pack has very little space for root growth.
We recommend clients germinate their own seeds in a seed bed or seed tray (in a warm or sheltered spot) and then transplant these little seedlings straight into 1-litre potting bags. It is not recommended to plant your seedlings into small tube-packs first because you want them to grow to 30-40cm tall in their potting bags, so that they are strong enough to go out into your lands, and their roots need space to grow in the bag. You can view our step-by-step germination and potting out seedling instructions here.
Just look at the length of the roots on this seedling — as much root growth as stem growth! Remember that a lucerne tree grows a deep tap root that can go up to 10m deep, so its natural desire is to go down deep!
Potting bags can be ordered online or purchased at your local nursery or agricultural supplier. When selecting your potting bag, choose tall bags rather than short wide bags so that those roots have space to grow in. Potting bags are cheap – only about R1 per bag.
When a client receives his little seedlings in tube-packs, he must then immediately transplant these seedlings into 1-litre potting bags. Remember that lucerne trees generally do not like to have their roots disturbed and so follow our step-by-step transplant instructions exactly and keep the soil around the roots intact when transplanting them. You can view these instructions here.
Although it is winter here in South Africa, and plant growth is slow, it is good to start now. Order your seeds and seedlings by filling in the contact form on our Orders page. Your seeds will have a head-start while kept sheltered, and by spring, when soil temperatures begin to warm, they will begin their real growth and should be tall enough and ready to plant out by summer. We do not have any trees in bags in stock at the moment. All our trees and seedlings are R15 per tree regardless of size or packaging.
We transplant our newly germinated lucerne tree seedlings on an almost a daily basis with almost 100% success rate.
We provide clients receiving their couriered tube-packed lucerne tree seedlings our detailed step-by-step instructions. These are the methods we successfully use and trust that they will have similar success, but this is not always the case.
So, what can cause a transplant seedling to wither and die?
The most common problem with almost all transplant issues is disturbance or damage to the seedling roots.
Disturbance to the roots may occur by ~
removing the soil from around the seedling roots – breaking or shaking the soil off the roots
pulling up the seedling from its soil and stripping the soil off its roots
bruising the roots and/ or tender stem with heavy-handed methods
allowing the soil around the roots to dry out
over-watering
using a water-logged, soggy soil in the potting bags
With this in mind, we have updatedour transplant instructions. Instead of first filling your potting bag, wetting it and then using a dibber to make a hole in the soil, we recommend you rather put your seedling with all its soil still around the roots into an empty potting bag and then gently fill it with soil around the plant. This is to avoid disturbing the tube-pack soil by trying to squeeze it into the hole in the potting bag soil.
How to avoid these mistakes?
First wet the soil in the tube-packs. This will ensure that the soil stays packed around the roots and will not easily fall apart or off the seedling’s roots.
Use a sharp blade to cut open the tube-packs vertically, both along the front and back. This will allow you to gently ease out the soil pack without disturbing the soil. DO NOT pull the seedling up out of the tube-pack!
Cradle the seedling in your hand and avoid rough movements that may break the soil apart.
Gently ease the seedling into the potting bag, being sure not to knock or bump it so that the soil pack remains on the roots.
Gently fill the potting bag around the seedling.
Firm the soil gently around the seedling so that there are no air pockets or empty spaces in the bag. Be firm but gentle.
Water the potting bag very well straight away.
Check your potting bag soil for moisture by sticking your finger into the soil to see if it is still damp before watering. Remember that these trees hate to sit in soggy wet soil for long periods. Rather water with a light spray more regularly than soak the bags under heavy irrigation.
Look out for snails! They can cause a lot of damage to young seedlings. Take action and put down snail bait around your potting bags.
Watch out for birds that may snack on the delicious young leaves. Place shadecloth over your trees to protect them.
We are confident of your success if you follow our tried and tested methods. Please feel free to call or email us for any advice or click here to Order.
We courier bare-root lucerne trees to clients all across South Africa and we are confident of your success if you follow our tried-and-tested transplanting instructions. Here is a video to show how we transplant bare-rooted lucerne trees into our 1-litre potting bags ~
It is vital that you immediately pot out your newly collected trees into individual 1-litre potting bags and keep them in a sheltered spot until they reach about 30cm in height. This growth could take another month or so, depending on the temperature.
To save on transport costs, we courier our young lucerne trees bare-rooted. We take young saplings out of their potting bags, remove most of their soil and package them in some moist soil. We wrap the root bundle in wet newspaper and place the bundle in plastic bags to keep the roots covered and moist. Bare-rooted trees can survive several days so long as the roots are not dried out.
Plantout your trees immediately into potting bags filled with potting or topsoil soil. Do notuse compost or manure in your mix. Waterthe soil in the potting bags just before you transplant your trees.
Here’s how to transplant your bare-rooted trees into potting bags~
Once you receive your trees, open the bundle and carefully unwrap the trees. Place the roots and soil into a bowl of water.
Gently loosen the trees and do not simply pull them apart. It is imperative that you do not break the roots when you separate the trees!
Use your finger and make a hole in the soil in the potting bag, deep enough for the roots to go their full length.
Gently ease the roots into the prepared hole, making sure the roots are able to fit into the hole without damaging them.
Firm the soil gently around the roots and stem. There should be no air pockets in the soil or else the roots will dry out and die. Trees like to have a snug fit in their bag.
Water well immediately. Thereafter water lightly regularly, but don’t over-water as these trees don’t like sitting in prolonged soggy soil.
The trees often go into transplant shock and may look wilted and take several days to recover. Should the tips remain wilted after two weeks after planting, prune the damaged tips. If most of the leaves fall off but the stem remains green, your tree may still bud again, so don’t give up too soon.
Protect your trees and prevent anything from eating them. Keep an eye out for snails and sprinkle snail bait around your bags
Once your saplings reach 30-40cm tall, plant them out into your land as described in our step-by-step planting instructions. This is the very simple yet successful method we use to our transplant trees into bags.
Please share your experiences with us via our email ~ lucerne.trees@gmail.com. Order your trees today!
Please note ~ Due to strict importation restrictions; import and bio-security regulations, we do not ship trees internationally. We can only courier trees to clients living in South Africa.
We have had several emails from interested international clients, but unfortunately we are unable to courier trees overseas.
South African courier companies are not permitted to ship plants internationally, and international country’s customs will not permit plants in as imports without the necessary phytosantitary certificates that allow entry to permitted plant consignments. Also, shipping times and unnecessary delays at customs or depots make couriering bare-rooted trees an impossible option.
Couriering young bare-rooted trees is a fairly risky option. We need to ensure that the trees are transplanted as soon as possible. We try to ensure that we avoid any unnecessary delays at the couriers, depots, while in transit, or once collected from the couriers themselves. We use an overnight service with special delivery instructions to ensure that the trees arrive within 1-2 days. Clients should keep their courier package out of the sun, keep the parcel in a cool place until they can plant out their trees.
Currently all our young lucerne trees are ready for planting straight out into your lands, and, if planted now, your trees will have time to become established before the colder autumn months slow their growth.
Order yours today. We recommend international clients order seeds instead.
Please note ~ Due to importation restrictions; strict import & bio-security regulations, we do not ship trees internationally.
Please note ~ Due to importation restrictions; strict import & bio-security regulations, we do not ship trees internationally. We can only courier trees to clients living in South Africa.
To keep transport costs low we courier young bare-rooted lucerne trees with Overnight/ Express service to main centres to arrive within 1 day. Clients living outside main cities can expect to wait another working day for collection or door-to-door delivery, so within 2-3 days you will have your trees.
Place your order for bare-rooted trees on our Prices & Orders page and we will send you trees to plant straight away!
Bare-rooted trees can survive so long as the roots are not dried out. These bare-rooted trees’ roots are covered with some moist soil and then wrapped in wet paper towels, paper and plastic to keep the exposed roots covered and moist.
Clients will need to have their holes preparedbefore the delivery is sent = Dig each hole +40cm deep + 1 cup of compost + half a cup of phosphates (optional). Refill the hole and mix with the soil removed from the hole.
It is vital that you immediately plant out your newly collected trees.
Once you receive your parcel, carefully unwrap the trees, lay them flat with their roots in a tray or bowl of water. (Don’t leave the roots soaking in the water for too long – just until you have separated them and are ready to plant them.) If you are working without soaking the roots, keep the roots covered with the wet soil and paper and re-wrap the rest of the bundle as you plant each tree. DO NOT LET THE ROOTS DRY OUT!
Gently loosen and lift each one and do not simply pull them apart. It is imperative that you work carefully not to break the roots when you separate each tree.
Fill the prepared holes in your land with water.
Then plant each tree into the prepared holes, making sure theroots are able to fit into the hole without damaging them.
Refill the hole, firming the soil gently around the roots and then water again well.
Transplanted trees may look wilted and may need a few days to recover. Should the tree tips remain wilted after two weeks after planting, trim off the damaged tips.
Water lightly regularly, but don’t over-water as these trees don’t like sitting in wet soil.
Your young saplings should be managed as if you are planting out a fruit orchard. Check them regularly for signs that critters are eating them such as snails and take appropriate action. Protect each tree for 18-months to 2 years. Don’t forget to prune your young trees to promote side-branches and to keep your trees to 1-meter tall.
You can view all our step-by-step instructions and photos covering our tried and tested methods of how we prepare the lands, how to calculate the spacing, plant in ploughed rows and the different irrigation methods under Planting Trees.
Our lucerne tree nursery is bursting with saplings ready to plant. All our trees are going at R10 a tree and we have thousands of trees in stock!
We courier these saplings across the country with PostNet’s Overnight service. This means that you could collect your trees the next day and plant them immediately into your prepared holes in your lands.
While this method is a fairly high-risk approach, we always tuck in a lot of “spare” bare-rooted trees in the parcel as a back-up for any tree that doesn’t recover from its transplant shock.
We also have lucerne trees in individual potting bags. Clients who wish to visit us here on our farm and collect their trees should place an order and make an appointment for their visit.
Update ~ These trees are only available for South African clients. We are not permitted to courier trees internationally due to strict import and bio-security laws.
Please pop over to our Price & Orders page to fill our contact form and place an order or ask for a quote.
Update ~ These trees are only available for South African clients. We are not permitted to courier trees internationally due to strict import and bio-security laws.
We are very busy right now, delivering trees to our clients that ordered earlier this year and we have stacks more trees in stock ready for you!
Thousands of young lucerne trees ready for planting
This winter we planted thousands of our tiny trees in a wonderful raised bed and have watched them develop into flourishing, healthy saplings that are tall and strong enough to go straight into your lands. And because these trees came from established lucerne trees on our farm, they already have the rhizobia nodules on their roots and will not require any inoculation.
For most clients, we pot them into individual 1-litre potting bags which provide them with a window of time to plant them out.
Trees in bags ready for delivery
But for clients living outside George, Western Cape region, where transport is too expensive to deliver trees in bags, we are couriering bare-rooted trees.
Most courier services deliver to main their depots overnight and clients living outside main cities can expect to wait another working day for collection or door-to-door delivery, so within 2 days you will have your trees. Bare-rooted trees can survive so long as the roots are not dried out
The bare-rooted trees’ roots are wrapped in wet newspaper and plastic to keep the exposed roots covered and moist. Clients will need to plant out these trees immediately and will need their holes prepared with half a cup of phosphates mixed with the soil removed from the hole and gently filled back in before the delivery is ordered.
To make a more informed choice about ordering bare-rooted trees, we want to explain what the process involves for you. (We hope to upload photos and videos of the bare-rooted process for you soon!)
It is vital that you work quickly with your newly couriered trees.
Once you receive and carefully unwrap the trees, lay their roots into a tray or bowl of water.
It is imperative that you do not break the roots when you separate the trees. Gently loosen them and do not simply pull them apart.
They will do fine so long as the roots are kept wet, but don’t leave them in the water for too long – just until you have separated them and are ready to plant them.
Fill the holes in your land with water.
Then plant each tree into the prepared holes, making sure the roots are able to fit into the hole without damaging them.
Refill the hole, firming the soil around the roots and then water well.
Trees may look wilted and need a few days to recover, but should the tips remain wilted after two weeks after planting, trim off the damaged tips.
Water lightly regularly, but don’t over-water as these trees don’t like sitting in wet soil.
Your young saplings should be managed as if you are planting out a fruit orchard. Check them regularly for signs that critters are eating them such as snails and take appropriate action. Water regularly during their first year.
Please note that we cannot courier trees internationally due to strict bio-security laws.
We are confident of your success should you follow our detailed instructions and tested advice and are willing to assist you should you have any other questions or concerns. Please read all our detailed step-by-step planting instructions on our Planting Trees page and place your orders on our Prices & Orders page.
Lucerne Tree Farm 