Gardening: Why it’s time to plant your deciduous trees now

When it comes to deciduous shrubs and trees, fall and winter are the seasons they get serious about root growth. In places like Southern California, where the ground never freezes, roots never stop growing. However, as long as leaves, fruits, and seeds are developing and ripening, root system expansion takes a backseat to growth of these above-ground plant parts.
Although plants of every description experience a spurt in root growth this time of year, this is especially true of deciduous species