minnesota tree planting ok or to late?

hello seeing all these tree's on clearance is so tempting,is it to late to plant?i'm in minnesota zone 4.we got the trees in the back cut down and now i have room.maybe i should wait till next year to plant.

It depends on the tree and the location. If this is a conifer in a windy situation then, unless you give it a good burlap screen all round, it might suffer. But if the trees are deciduous and B&B'd or container trees normally hardy in your region than I'd go for it. Water the hole before planting, water the root ball in the hole and water the backfill as it goes in. Stake properly and mulch heavily. At planting loosen the roots to make sure they are heading outward into the surrounding soil and not girdling or circling. Don't be afraid to rough them up. Keep the mulch away from direct contact with the trunk. Pull back excess mulch in the early spring to allow the soil to warm and encourage root growth to get started. If bunnys are a problem put a chicken wire cage around the trunk, past the first limbs if you can. Bunnys love to munch on tender bark and can girdle the bark and/or nip off the lower limbs. With these precautions you should have a nice spring show.

Pardon me if you know all this stuff already. I just hate to see anybody make any of the mistakes I made way back when I was trying to figure out this gardening thing. ;)

well i bought some nice stuff today,i put them in my vegtable garden which has nothing in it.next year they will find their permanent spot.i might have to go back and buy more,the deals are to good.

Actually, fall is the best time to plant trees since the ground is warm but the air is cool. In the spring, the reverse exists and the ground is cold but the air is warm and that does not supply the best conditions for growth. Also, root growth is most active in the fall rather than in the spring/summer so planting now will allow the tree to get somewhat established and be ready to grow next spring. I would put down a good layer of mulch once planted to keep the ground from freezing as long as possible to allow the tree to extend its roots. Just be sure to keep the mulch a couple inches away from the trunk - no mulch volcanoes - they do more harm than good! (:o)

Once you've taken the tree out of the pot, remember to start removing soil from the top of the root ball little by little until you get to the root collar of the tree - the area where the roots first start to come off of the trunk. You want to plant so the root collar is just slightly above grade since the tree will settle a little once planted.

Trees are planted too deep in their containers for stability and it does not hurt them to be planted too deeply while in the pot, but once in the ground, it's a different story. If there are any circling roots around the side of the root ball, you also want to take a sharp knife (I bought a large sharp knife for this purpose at a garage sale for a quarter) and make 4 or 5 slices evenly spaced around the side of the root ball to sever the circling roots. Then start to pull on the roots to remove any that have been completely severed and to open up the root ball. You will also want to rough up the sides of the root ball to free any roots that are still circling due to the container, if they exist. While this might seem unusually rough on the tree, it's not and the tree will be much healthier years down the road.
Good luck,
Mike