moving trees

[fordson major]

have too move some cedars and spruce this summer/fall (whens best?) too fill in a border fence line. have backhoe but can also get a tree spade service too come in $$$$$$! should they get any fertilizer and should they get watered? (have a good source of manure tea!!!) we are also planting in a bunch of honey locust along there, spikes should ward off intruders!

[Old Vet]

The best time to move the trees is while they are dormant. you can move them anytime of the year if you get a large rootball. If you move them while they are dormant you can fertilied them and not much more. If you move them in the sumer they will have to be watered frequitly.

If you don't have enough huneylocost then you can have the ones that are growing around here.

[Dirtslinger]

Move right now, or wait till fall. Either way, water them in well.

[suburbanite]

Where's an Ent when you need one?

Moved trees tend to be vulnerable to wind, even years later. So if they get to be 40 feet tall when mature, make sure they're at least 50 feet from anything they can fall on!

[Paul Wheaton]

How big of a tree are we talking about?

[vicker]

If they are not huge, you should root prune them now (or very soon) and move them late next winter or early spring. Water, Water, Water.

[fishhead]

Some places rent tree spades so if you are going to move a bunch that might be an option.

Mulch is good for transplanted trees but keep it away from the stem.

I moved some 15' tall maples by hand once. They were tall and spindly because of the canopy shading them and forcing them to reach. I only moved 3 so I first dug out the receiving hole (in sandy gravel) extra large and lined it with clay. We watered and watered and watered the first year and they did great. The clay helped hold the water.

[Jenn]

In dormancy they moved my fig tree with a backhoe and it is doing beautifully now. If dormancy doesn't arrive conveniently you can try root pruning to speed it up or make the rootball needed smaller. Good luck.

[fordson major]

thanks for the info! right now we still have some frost in the ground, where its open its runny clay mud! most of the trees are 5 too 8 feet tall, there is a tree spade service 2 miles down the road, never any one there though as they are very busy! think i will prune the roots then move late October. old vet, yep know what you mean! before we had sheep the honey locusts we had planted started too move in too the fields. since they have come only the adults have survived!

[Maura]

The canopy won't grow out until the roots reach out as far as the present canopy. When you plant, fertilize with something that will encourage root growth.

[Ralph in N.E.Oh]

The old timers say any month with an "R" in it.

[sue currin]

Make sure you tamp them down good, you don't want any air around the roots. We moved some 20 feet tall Maples about 200 feet with a back hoe, still living 7 years later. It almost killed us trying to hold on to ropes, Looked like something you see on funny videos. I now try to keep it to 7 foot and a shovel.

[MELOC]

evergreens can be moved year round because they are active year round. you need to keep them moist...don't let them dry out. anything that drops it's leaves is probably best moved when dormant. you should prune the roots as little as possible and prune the tree's limbs by maybe one third to counter the disturbance to the root ball.

if you want a barrier/hedge, look into hawthorn trees. they are definately thorny and a deterant to anything that you want to keep in or out.

[RedneckPete]

If available a tree spade is far superior to a backhoe when it comes to moving trees. If it wasn't, they wouldn't exist.

Moving a decent sized tree with a backhoe can be done, but it is very hard on them. Usually the root ball falls apart and you basically end up with a bare-root transplant.

Don't bore me with stories about the hundreds of successful moves you have seen done with a backhoe. Yes it can be done, no it is not the best way to do it. Rent the tree spade if you have more then a few to move, or you actually care about whether or not the tree survives. It will be money well spent.

Pete

[Dave S.]

If you are going to do it with a backhoe, you can dig the root ball a little larger and hand finish the root ball with a shovel and make clean cuts on any exposed roots. Then you can wrap the rootball in burlap and tie it up with three-ply string forming an interwoven basket. You will then need to strap the tree out of the hole, or use pallet forks. This is absolutely acceptable, just more time consuming than the tree spade. 5-8 foot trees should be fairly easy.

"Don't bore me with stories about the hundreds of successful moves you have seen done with a backhoe. Yes it can be done, no it is not the best way to do it. Rent the tree spade if you have more then a few to move, or you actually care about whether or not the tree survives. It will be money well spent.

Pete"

RedneckPete, did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed or something? Your reply seems a little terse. Not everybody can afford to hire out this kind of work, and are willing to risk it. I have moved thousands of trees, in all different ways. The company where I learned to move trees has three 90"s, two 60"s and four skidsteer mounted spades, and sometimes, you just have to hand dig.


Dave

[RedneckPete]

Originally Posted by Dave S.

Not everybody can afford to hire out this kind of work, and are willing to risk it.

If you have free access to a backhoe, your time would be better spent hiring out yourself with your backhoe and then using the cash to hire a tree spade. There is a machine for every job. Just as I would not recommend digging footings for your new shop with a tree spade (although I'm sure a crafty and exceptionally cheap operator could do it,) so I would not recommend moving trees with a backhoe. (although I'm sure a crafty and exceptionally cheap operator could do it)

My response was what it was because I KNEW someone would come along and tell stories about how it could be done, and in doing so encourage the advice seeker to follow a foolish and ill advised path.

What would your advice be to someone who had a tree spade and wanted to use it to dig a basement? My advice would be "It's the wrong tool for the job." Use the right tool. Everyone ends up happier.

Pete

[MELOC]

try using a treespade in my rocky forest...

[Dave S.]

MELOC, precisely, sometimes you just can't use a spade. RedneckPete, I think you are being a little too idealistic, especially on a homesteading forum, where independance is king.


Dave

[fordson major]

have a friend with a koehring shovel, that is the only way he can move trees! (he did offer but real pain too move!) tree spade will work on our land though, have sold trees in the past. only thing is too catch them at home, busy people! having used a hoe (both tractor and hyhoe) for the last 35 years, can usually get the dirt where i want it! like the spade idea better though, much neater, cost is not bad either, 6 hours $400. ! (friend found them at the shop last week, passed on the info too me) can't even hire a kitty litter sifter for that!

[Dave S.]

I would avoid trimming any branches off of the tree, unless they are damaged. Now that you have reduced the rootball, and thus the strorage capacity of the tree, you need all the leaves you can get, after all that is where the tree converts sunlight into chlorophyll. Cutting off branches reduces the trees ability to rebuild its root system.


Dave