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Plastic burlap causes problems!

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plastic burlap causing problems

These trees were struggling about ten years after planting. Roots grew through plastic or artificial burlap with little trouble as shown here. Note the size of the trunk compared to the root ball indicating that the tree has grown substantially since it was planted.

The artificial burlap is still intact six years after planting. However, as roots attempted to expand in diameter, they became girdled or strangled (see next photo). Use only natural burlap, either treated or not treated, for wrapping root balls.