tree nursery

[raincrow]

How difficult would it be to start a nursery strictly devoted to commercial trees? I read somewhere that when the timber companies go to replant harvested land that they often have to buy transplants from outside contractors as their own nurseries are unable to produce all they need. Is this true? It seems that since most planting here in the west is done at a certain time of the year that this would be a seasonal market at best. Any info would be appreciated!

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

seedlings are grown in greenhouses in flats like flowers, sometimes moved several times befor the get to the nursery from which you buy them.

Can you imagine the numbe of seedlings needed to replant a clearcut?!?

 

[raincrow]

Having worked as a seasonal treeplanter, yeah, I unfortunately do know how many it takes. I guess that's why I'm interested in this. I'd like to be involved in the reforestation side of the business but am getting a wee bit old to be crawling around 70 degree slopes in the freezing rain and sleet. Thanks for the greenhouse tip: saw a Weyerhauser nursery in Oregon that sounds a lot like what you describe. Seems like a controlled environment would be the way to go. Expensive though.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Hoop house is not that pricy. You can make them by bending conduit and putting plastic sheeting over. you dont have to go that high, if you want to duck walk. The biggest cost would be heating.

This is if you want to propigate, you could by flats of seedlings and raise them to the little whipps that get palnted.

 

[Garden Visions]

Nursery

On the subject of starting a nursery you must choose what kind of nursery you want to be. You could grow in flats and containers, but you must consider the expense.
Another option is selling your stock as bareroot seedlings. It does not require as much to sow seeds in prepared ground beds. Irrigation is cut back tremendously, and shipping is much cheaper.
Your harvest would be Spring, and since many of your seeds need cold stratification, planting would be done in fall.
You may also choose to buy bareroot stock, pot it into 1 gallon containers and sell in the fall. Incorporate all these methods and you will find the selling season goes much beyond Spring