Moving a big Giant sequoia, advice?

Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

Just a quetion where does the homeowner intend to put this tree. seeing as this family of trees gan grow to enormous sizes.
We have moved some instint landscape trees around do to construction and site size. upon removal we use a compost and mycrorhizea booster, and in the new area a hole twice as big soil amendments and heavy watering. Most of these have been Oaks,Maples,Ashes,Pines,and some Spuces. haven't dipped into the Sequia familey yet, but soon have one in a wierd location and over time will pose prolblems.
Nate
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

Oh,.... maybe I missed explaining this.

I'm moving this specimen to my OWN PROPERTY!

I want it. BAD. bigtime. I'm removing two bad trees for her in return, about 2000 value and filling the giant hole with soil and seeding it, and my own expenses in moving this tree. so, I've got to drive this thing down the road. will likely do it like at 5am on a Sunday morning.

just got my new air spade late friday night!

plan on airspading it Monday.

I will post updates.
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

[ QUOTE ]


I'm moving this specimen to my OWN PROPERTY!


[/ QUOTE ]

I hope someday I will get to tour your "arboretum"!


SZ
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

[ QUOTE ]
Oh,.... maybe I missed explaining this.

I'm moving this specimen to my OWN PROPERTY!

I want it. BAD. bigtime. I'm removing two bad trees for her in return, about 2000 value and filling the giant hole with soil and seeding it, and my own expenses in moving this tree. so, I've got to drive this thing down the road. will likely do it like at 5am on a Sunday morning.

just got my new air spade late friday night!

plan on airspading it Monday.

I will post updates.

[/ QUOTE ]

Sounds like one large project, best of luck, can't wait to check out the operation!
elefant.gif
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

update, the airspade arrived Friday. (oh, i see i already said that above, getting senile I guess)

plan on airspading a circle around the tree and make proper root cuts as someone suggested earlier. Likely this week, Wedn, Thursday or Friday. Too unusually hot Monday and Tuesday of this week.

i have never witnessed an airspade at work in person. so this should be pretty cool.

it's time we got one, we've been getting into a lot of root problem corrections these past few years and we've done it all by hand. and therefor, mainly just the immediate root collar area. we could be much more thorough with an airspade.

you guys that use them a lot. does your company own the aircompressor or still just rent one every time?

used equipment has been going extremely cheap at auctions lately, i could likely pick one up very reasonable these days.
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

[ QUOTE ]
we could be much more thorough with an airspade.

you guys that use them a lot. does your company own the aircompressor or still just rent one every time?

used equipment has been going extremely cheap at auctions lately, i could likely pick one up very reasonable these days.

[/ QUOTE ]

I would day pick up a good used one. Once you see what you can do with the airspade, you will be able to sell the service enough to warrant the expense.

Plus having to rent one just means you have to wait for a bunch of jobs to accumulate before being able to make it worth it.

Also, invest in some good cover-alls, it's a dusty job!

SZ (your new best friend)
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

thanks best friend buddy.

it's like back in middle school, i got in a fight with a kid and we both gave each other a pounding, after that, we became good friends for the rest of our school years; because we respected each other.
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

I make friends mostly by punching unsuspecting strangers in the nose.

Once they respect me, we are totally cool.

I have never really thought about mutual respect. That sounds like it might work.


SZ
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

i cut a trench around the potential root ball area. i took lots of pictures for you guys and need to post them and get your opinions (good ones only please
grin.gif
)
I don't get it; almost no roots visible, only 5 feet away from the trunk in the trench. unless they are way down farther than any tree that i have ever seen?

i will post the other pictures of some problems at the root flare and if you think someone added fill dirt over the area.

oh crap, i might be digging this root ball tomorrow evening, so i better download and post now......

another extremely late night with little sleep.
crazy.gif
 

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Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

the tree from a distance
 

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Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

before airspade and after.

trench is basically 16 inches down for the most part.

then, for about a 4 foot section, i went down about 28 inches or so.

no sizeable roots (nothing over 1/8" diameter!) of sequoia found in this trench. all sizeable roots are from white pine, a birch, blue spruce and dead ones from a removed silver maple. almost no sequioa roots at all!??? what's up?
 

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Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

area that i went down about 28 inches or so, just to make sure there wasn't some roots down deep somehow.

nothing found. bigger roots seen here are from a birch.
 

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Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

a little collar airspading to see what's going on.

this is a canker/burl that died and decayed. trunk above this has some dead tissue too.

now, i'm not familiar with sequioa, but if this was like any other tree, it seems like about 10 inches of soil was added over this area or something?

what do you think?

those small upper roots seem like secondary stuff, reacting to the added soil.

and that little buldge in the trunk? usually high soil can girdle a bit and make a buldge like that, but maybe this specie just looks like that?

bigger roots finally flare out down below, seem unusually deep to me.

this crown of this tree isn't very wide at all, so maybe the roots are the same way. maybe they are stout and end quickly when it comes to length?

intellegent thoughts anyone?

(better go to bed now and get 2 hours of sleep before i have to get up at 6am)
 

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Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

Yup those are all adventitious roots--that sucker was buried deep. Could be a factor in the extent of dieback. The canker looks like it may be compartmentalized. Discouraging news from TN, just watching that canker grow. Didn't they try to treat it?

Pathologists typically seem to worship pathogens instead of attacking them.

Annyhoo, I hope you have a friendly local backhoe jockey who will TRY to get deep enough to get enough roots to make this work. If you try digging it by hand you will be investing another $2k in labor, and chiropractor bills.

I'm a little south of you, where this surely would be a November project. Next time, find the flare first, before that rescue impulse takes over and drives you crazy! I know; this happens to me a lot...
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

I agree with the deep planting and lack of buttress flare, etc., etc.
Also, remember like their cousins (the coastal redwoods) GS have few structural roots for their size (hence the huge buttress bases). They establish 'root mats' (5-6 ft. deep and 100's ft wide) consisting of very fine feeder roots.
These mats act like sponges to help absorb the enormous amounts of water these trees need... up to 250 gals./per day! (depending on size)
GS and redwoods are basically living vertical water towers.

The smaller roots are also better able to penetrate crevices in their constant search for water/nutrients. These fine roots will seek out septic systems and water lines clogging them quickly with their fine roots...just so you know.

Xman, I admire your efforts but this tree has already been under a lot of stress and this 'move' may be the straw that breaks its back. Sorry to say.
Purchase a new GS and give it lots of water and it will grow very quickly, believe me.

-Diane-
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

if i had one more hour of daylight today, the tree would be on the truck.

very very different root structure than any other tree i have ever seen. I will post pictures another day.

roots are very small, as diane said, but i saw no root mats that she talked about nor did they go out very far at all. only about 4 feet out from the trunk on each side! They did go deep. I'm not saying Diane is wrong, I'm sure she is right and finally I got some response from someone that knows these trees. This tree does follow what she said about deep roots though.

They did go suprisingly deep, even into the dense poor clay lower soil levels; unbelievable. some 3 or 4 foot deep.

soil had about 1.5 to 2 feet of good organic rich soil, then a nasty dense clay muck, then a hard dry clay.

owner says she really doesn't remember any soil ever being put over that area. the trees flare doesn't look like she's right, but the grade and the other trees nearby look like she's right, unless the tree would have originally been planted in a dip.

I don't know of any other GS in Maryland that has any size to it. I'm sure there must be, but I've never seen one, and get this, the Maryland Champion Tree List does not even have a single Giant Sequoia listed. If I submit it, I will be the proud owner of the Maryland Champion Giant Sequioa (until someone steps forward and submit a bigger one). I contacted them, and they said yes, they would like to see it registered.

I keep hearing that these trees grow fast normally. But this one was planted in 1975 as a 5 inch seedling bought in California at a park. this is small for this age right? 34 years old.

I'm still going to move it and hopefully with it in better growing conditions I can stimulate this thing to take off. It seems very rot resistant and if its vigor speeds up, it should be able to grow and contain these wounds it has.

"The smaller roots are also better able to penetrate crevices in their constant search for water/nutrients. These fine roots will seek out septic systems and water lines clogging them quickly with their fine roots...just so you know".

Good, i had read out them tapping into springs and water and such. So I prepared a special location for this tree, with underground water source. i might explain later.

thanks everyone!
 
Re: Tree to Move, Fert first? Help.

Okay, Xman, since you are determined to go through with this.
Here's some more information:

[ QUOTE ]
roots are very small,...... only about 4 feet out from the trunk on each side! They did go deep.

[/ QUOTE ]

For this tree.... that's its root mat.

How far out from the trunk did you airspade?
You want to retain as much of this root mat as you can and that your machinery can handle moving.

These roots NEED to stay moist. Lay wet burlap over all exposed areas from airspading and during transport. Even hose down trunk and branches and wrap them with wet burlap during transport.


[ QUOTE ]
I keep hearing that these trees grow fast normally. But this one was planted in 1975 as a 5 inch seedling bought in California at a park. this is small for this age right? 34 years old

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes, your tree is stunted which was another red flag when I read your first post. 2-3 ft./per year is common for a healthy young tree and once it is established it will grow up to 8+ft/yr. depending on water and soil. Plus it should put on girth especially at its base.

[ QUOTE ]
I prepared a special location for this tree, with underground water source

[/ QUOTE ]

Good. This is crucial.

Also, amend the new planting area with good compost before transplanting. Do not add fertilizer.
You want the tree to produce new root mass as quickly as it can.
Then water, water, water.....and let us know how it goes.
Good luck!

-Diane-
 
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