- For Plants and Trees that with root balls about 12” in dia., (11-15”, e.g. 3-10 Gallon Container Sizes have top diameters between 11-15”) - Uses 99% LESS WATER than traditional tree bag over the course of multiple seasons for better establishment of the newly planted trees and shrubs! When the plant root ball is larger than 15”, the 36”, 48”, or multiple units of these larger sized SteadySpring Tree Mats are recommended to cover an area double of the root ball size or at least 20” larger than the root ball.
- Keep SteadySpring Tree Mats in place for 1 year plus 1 year per inch of caliper (e.g. 2 years for 1” caliper trees, 3 years for 2” caliper trees) to ensure establishment of the trees in the new environment. Rated life of SteadySpring Tree Mats is 3-5 years.
- Leave out year-round - even in frozen climates! They will refill themselves with snow and rain while protecting your plants against freezing temperatures and deicing salts!
- Cover with wood chips or coarse-structured mulch to help prevent direct sunlight exposure, while returning nutrients to tree roots, reducing evaporation, providing insulation to the root system, and keeping the SteadySpring mat from getting stolen! Do not use dirt/soil/fine sand/fine-structured mulch to cover SteadySpring Tree Mats because the small particles may block rainwater!
- Soak first for a 1-3 hours. When the right sizes are used, SteadySpring Tree Mats will typically function for up to 30 days without watering and maintain effectiveness for years with as little as 1 inch of rainwater per month. You could go months or years without refilling! When soaking, avoid swimming pool water as some may contain large amount of dissolved solids.
- SOIL MOISTURE STABILIZER - prevents soils from getting too wet (root rot) or too dry (tree suffering). Soil will remain at a healthy, moist level for the tree to thrive. If the soil seems too dry, look at how the tree is doing or use a moisture meter to measure. A moisture rating from 4 to 7 (out of 10) is ideal for most tree species to thrive!
- SteadySpring has a weed barrier top to eliminate plants and weeds growing around the root system that normally steal water and nutrients. This allows for less water to be used.
