Field-grown or container-grown trees: which is right for you?
Field-grown trees are grown in the open ground and lifted as root-balled trees in the dormant season, which gives you more tree for your money. Container-grown trees are grown in pots, so they can be planted at any time of year. Both are excellent, and the right choice depends on your timing, your budget and your site. At Form, both are peat-free.
Photograph coming soon
Suggested lead photograph: root-balled and container-grown trees side by side on the nursery
Field-grown trees
Field-grown trees spend their lives in the soil, where they develop a natural, spreading root system. When they are dormant, usually from November to March, they are lifted with a ball of roots and soil, which is wrapped in hessian and often held in a wire basket. These are known as root-balled trees. Smaller trees and hedging can also be lifted bare-root, with no soil at all.
Advantages
The first advantage is value. Growing in the field needs no large pots, no compost and less irrigation, so a root-balled tree usually costs less than a container-grown tree of the same size. That saving goes furthest at the top end, which is why large statement trees are often most affordable root-balled and why your budget stretches to a bigger specimen.
The roots themselves are another reason to choose field-grown. Because the tree has grown in open ground, its roots spread outwards just as they will in your garden. Being grown in soil also means a root-balled tree is peat-free by nature, with no compost involved at all, and it arrives in hessian and wire rather than a large plastic pot, so there is far less plastic too.
Things to know
Root-balled trees can only be lifted and planted in the dormant season, roughly late autumn to early spring, and they are best planted soon after delivery. Once in the ground, they need careful watering through their first two summers while the roots establish.
Photograph coming soon
Suggested photograph: a root-balled tree in hessian ready for delivery
Container-grown trees
Container-grown trees are grown in pots or air-pots for at least a season, so their whole root system travels with them. They can be planted at any time of year, as long as you can keep them watered.
Advantages
The great strength of a container-grown tree is that it can be planted all year round. That makes it the natural choice when a project cannot wait for the dormant season, and it suits summer installations, events and fixed completion dates particularly well. Because the tree goes in with its roots intact, there is very little root disturbance and it settles in quickly. Container trees are also easy to hold, which means they can wait a little longer on site before planting, provided they are watered regularly.
They are peat-free as well. Form has never used peat in its own growing, and no plant we supply contains new peat, whoever grew it.
Things to know
A container-grown tree usually costs more than a root-balled tree of the same size, and it needs regular watering, especially if it is planted in summer.
Side by side
| Field-grown (root-balled) | Container-grown | |
|---|---|---|
| Planting season | Late autumn to early spring | All year round |
| Value | Best value, more tree for your money | Pay a little more for flexibility |
| Roots | Natural, field-grown roots in a soil ball | Whole root system in the pot |
| Best for | Planned winter planting, larger specimens, avenues and hedging | Summer projects, events, fixed deadlines |
| Peat-free | Yes, grown in soil | Yes, no new peat |
How the seasons affect your choice
If you are planning ahead for winter planting, root-balled trees give the best value and some of the finest specimens. Autumn is the best time to plant just about anything, and it is also the start of the root-balled season. If you need trees in spring or summer, or on a fixed date, container-grown trees are the answer, and with enough notice we can even contract grow them for you.
Photograph coming soon
Suggested photograph: container-grown trees on the nursery in summer
Not sure which to choose?
Tell us about your project and timescale and we will recommend the best option. You can read more about why root-balled trees offer the best value and how to prepare for delivery, or browse our trees.