Watering Trees

Question

My wife placed the water hose under every tree for one hour every 3 to 4 days, even in cold weather. I believe it’s a waste of water and most of that water goes deep down and is not helping the trees. Please let me know which one of us is right and what is the proper way to do that.

Answer 1

It depends on how long the trees have been in the ground. For trees planted under a year, this kind watering is needed, but once it has been in the ground for a year, it really only needs water during drought like conditions in the summer (less than 2 inches per week). Trees that are established have grown deep roots that can find deep water. Frequent watering can actually hurt established trees, as it encourages shallow roots rather than deep roots.