A Few Tips on loading Birthday Blossom into Vehicles 

The ornamental cherry trees you’ll be picking up this weekend will be small enough to fit into most types of vehicles. Since you may not have loaded trees into cars before, we would like to give you a few tips from our partner GardenWorks for fitting the trees into cars comfortably while minimizing the possibility of damage to the plant.

Here are some general tips:

  • Cars with hatchback or seats which fold down should be loaded tip first and pot last. This allows the tree to fit entirely in the car with the tip ending up between the driver and passenger seat (if it is that long). This method eliminates the need to tie the partially open car trunk down against the tree – which should be avoided when possible.
  • Cars with back seats which do NOT fold down have two options.  (See Mustang section below).
  • Tying the branches up with string or twine (to make the top narrower) will reduce the chance that branches will get caught up on anything in the car as you guide it through.
  • Related to the last point: it’s helpful to have someone inside the car’s front door (either side) to help guide the tree tip in between the driver and passenger’s seat while the other person is loading it in through the back.
  • The tree should always lay on its side when at rest in the car, so it is a good practice to put the pot in a garbage bag to keep any soil from spilling out or to protect the car interior from dirt on the side of the pot.
  • To prevent the pot from rolling around when the car is moving place something with enough weight up against it.

Here’s some advice related to your vehicle type:

  • Pick-up trucks

Obviously the easiest vehicle to load! However, to ensure the tree does not move in transit lay it down (don’t stand it up) and put something with weight against the pot to keep it from rolling.

  • Hatchbacks & SUV’s

These will require the back seats to be folded down in order to lay the tree down. Otherwise, the general tips above apply. Before leaving to pick-up your tree it is recommended that you fold down the back seats of your car.

  • Mustangs (& other cars that do not have a large enough passage into the back seat from the trunk)

There are two options for loading trees into these types of cars. First, you can try to put the pot on the passenger side floor leaning the trunk back toward the seat behind the driver. If the tree is not too tall this will usually work (assuming some other spot for the passenger to sit). Second, if the tree must go in the trunk put the pot in first (and the branches will be sticking outside the car trunk). It is crucial that you wrap the bark of the trunk or branches with newspaper (bound by twine) or a blanket at the points where the car trunk lid may contact the tree when the car trunk is tied down. The bark must be protected from scratches from the trunk lid to prevent damage.