More about RPM®
History
Forrest Keeling Nursery in Missouri developed this system to provide a solution for establishing plants - mainly native oaks - in areas where floods destroyed native habitat along the Missouri, Mississippi, and Illinois river drainages. Working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Missouri Department of Conservation, U.S. Forest Service, and conservation groups - plantings of RPM® trees were utilized and proven to perform far better than conventionally grown plants. A typical planting would require 400 trees per acre. The end result of that planting would be 40 trees per acre, as typically, 90% would not survive. Using RPM® trees, then recommendation went from 400 trees per acre to 45 trees per acre, as the RPM® planting would have a loss of less than 5%. This system has proven to succeed in these conservation plantings. RPM® trees, as compared to conventionally grown plants, exhibited: increased survivability, accelerated growth, earlier seed production - thus promoting regeneration, strong brace roots, enhanced growth in stem diameter and overall height, and even distribution of biomass above and below ground level.
Wayne Lovelace of Forrest Keeling Nursery, founder of the RPM® system, demonstrates the difference between a conventional 2 year bare root product (715 days) on left vs. an RPM® grown product in one growing season (210 days) on the right.
Established conservation planting of RPM® oaks at 4 years from planting.
Proven Reasearch
In 1999 and 2000, the Queens University and Green Mount College of Agriculture in the United Kingdom, conducted research involving conventionally grown seedlings of oak and RPM® seedlings. Once planted out, the RPM plants exhibited much more vigorous growth and had more biomass produced, as compared to plants grown conventionally in deep pots and bareroot. Photos taken 1 year after planting out.
Cell-grown tree at 2 ¼ seasons.
RPM® grown trees at 2 ¼ seasons.
Field of established RPM grown trees.
Conclusions
• RPM® has produced tree seedlings of superior quality and improved vigor compared with CGT (cell-grown) and BR (bareroot) transplants.
• RPM® trees continuing to demonstrate enhanced growth (height, stem diameter) compared with BR and CGT.
RPM® at High Ranch
Twice the Tree in Half the Time
In March, 2004, High Ranch Nursery became a licensed RPM® grower. Many of our trees were started using the process. Since then, we’ve used the RPM® system on other plants, including more difficult to grow species such as Loropetalum, Coleonema ‘Golden Sunset’, Camellia, Cornus, Daphne, and Pieris. We are continuing to add to our line of superior rooted RPM® products. Look for more RPM® products as we areconstantly adding to our line of these superior plants. We are confident that we’ll see positive results in most species. Thus our slogan - Twice the Tree in Half the Time!
Some of our 1-year RPM® products
Loropetalum chin. ‘Purple’
Cornus flo. ‘Rubra’
Prunus cer. ‘Krauter Vesuvius’
Twice the Tree in Half the Time!