How to prepare the planting hole

If you have free-draining soil such as chalk or sand, it’s very important that the site for the tree should be thoroughly damp, so that moisture is instantly available to the tree’s roots. Dig the hole in which you are going to plant the tree several days before the actual planting. Fill it with water—up to the brim—so that it drains into the soil over the next few hours. Cover the hole with something like old sacking, so it doesn’t dry out in hot weather or freeze in cold. Repeat this two days before planting and, if the bottom of the hole is still muddy, delay until it is firmer. More trees are lost to inadequate watering than to any other failing—watering should begin before the tree is planted.