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Planting Balled-and-Burlapped Trees: Remove All Burlap

Always remove burlap completely—it's often treated to resist rot and inhibits root growth. Place tree, then cut away all accessible burlap and wire cage (use bolt cutters if needed).

See Do I Remove Root Balls?

About Gardening: Replacing a Birch Tree with an Autumn Blaze Maple: Stump Considerations; Rescuing a Heat-Stressed Laurel Oak Planted in Summer; Planting Balled-and-Burlapped Trees: Remove the Wire and Burlap!; Best Oak for Central Florida Sandy Hill: Consult County Forester; Planting White Birch in South Dakota: Site Selection and Spacing; Planting B&B Trees: Remove Burlap, Wire Cage OK; Invasive Paulownia: Remove Before It Spreads; Proper Tree Planting: Finding the Root Flare; Green Ash for Southern Landscapes: Proceed with Caution; Wire Basket on B&B Trees: Remove Burlap, Not Necessarily the Cage

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