Roadkill, I planted 60 hard/soft mast trees and 120 Norway Spruces last year with great success, however the winter isn't over here in NY.

Plan on planting 112 hard & soft mast trees again this year, 125 shrubs and 750 various spruce & fir's.

The gereneral rule is that pines about a 10 x 10 foot grid so that you can stil mow around, plus when they grow, you and the "deer" in my case can meander around. As for fruit tree's, "Persimons" should be fine with about a 15 foot spread. Oaks are recommended for a 25 foot spread due to the size they become unless you plan on transplanting them later on and thats way you want them so close.

I started off slow in my first year, plus it was a cost factor because on all my hard/soft mast trees I put tree protectors, stakes and black tarp2 ft square tarp around the base to stop weed vegatation. All things to consider. I started off in 2006 with 4 foot tubes, but this year going with the 5 foot since I ordered larger 3-5 foot seedlings and the deer love to nip the leaves and branches when they grow out.

Best of luck! Remember to enjoy the experience, don't make it so labor intensive that you wouldn't want to do it again! We encourge family and friends to join us, as we created a "Annual Tree Planting Weekend", this will be our second.

Here's a pic of the 12 Yates Apple Trees we planted last year.