What do I do to prepare the soil, besides dig a hole, plop them in and water.?

I was given two lilacs today about 6 ft tall freshly dug from a friends yard. One is a french lilac and the other a yellow lilac. I will plant them tomorrow. What do I do to prepare the soil, besides dig a hole plop them in and water. I live in Michigan. It is supposed to be around 70 degrees tomorrow and sunny. It rained all day today and the ground is soft.

What do I do to prepare the soil, besides dig a hole, plop them in and water.?
A small ammount of manure, as old as you can get at the base would be great, break it up with a little sand or soil and fire 'em in. Oh, nearly forgot, stake them for first few months and when planting hand pack around roots as you plant, then over fill and stomp it down, make them feel at home.


I live in Wisconsin mostly, love a tip on growing fruit up there if you have one.( Sloe berries%26lt;smile%26gt;)
Reply:Dig your hole, mix in with the soil you dug out some composte, and I usually put some composte straight up in the bottom of the hole and then fill it in and soak her with water. You want to fill in the base by hand as not to distrub the roots too much more and then pack in tight and water. Good luck.
Reply:There's an old saying-"Don't put a ten dollar plant in a five dollar hole." Plant the lilacs in a hole that's no deeper and about twice as wide as the root ball. Fill in the sides with well rotted- not fresh- manure or compost, stake the bush for support and keep well watered. Mulch around the plant, but not directly against the stems.



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