Moving a peach tree I am helping a friend move her peach tree as she is selling the house. The tree is about 7'-8' tall and 4' wide. Any tips to make this successful? I plan to cut about 1/3 to 1/2 off the tree to compensate for root loss. I know it is a bad time to move trees but we figure to give it a try anyway.
Re: Moving a peach tree We are not too warm yet to dig up and move a Fruit tree. Do not clip the tree until it is in its new home. Then you can clip back some top growth to force some root growth later after the tree gets over the shock of being abused. Start your digging about 2 feet away from the trunk in a circle. Dig straight down one foot all around and then then angle your next digs toward the center of the trunk from there. Ideally, what you want to do is get enough of the roots to sustain this tree in its new location. It is best to dig up the tree and transplant all in the same day. If I am doing the work I will have a 3 gallon bucket with me to mix in one fluid ounce of Vitamin B1 to every gallon of water to be applied after the tree has been set in its new site. After we have given the tree 3 gallons worth of solution we wait for the area to dry for an hour or two and then come back in and give the tree a good drink of water. Do not over water the tree the first day of the transplant. If you can do it wait for the ground to dry out before you again give it some water but you will want to give the tree in this weather in the 90's a quick drink twice a day for three days and then water the tree from then on when the ground appears dry afterwards. Wait about a week to 10 days before you even think of cutting back the top of the tree and then cut only if you have to, if you see signs of large amounts of die back starting from the tips of the branches towards the trunk. Peach trees are pretty adaptable. If we get enough root system to give the tree a chance to grow in its new home there should not be much of a problem that the tree will later respond and grow for us. The main limitation is that people will tend to want to overwater, super saturate, the tree for too long and too often after the transplant. We want to water in the transplanted tree well for a short while but we also want to give the roots a chance to breathe as well. Jim
We moved the tree but not as big of a rootball as I wanted to get, about 2 ft across and not very deep rootball, a few big taproots were severed. The tree was clipped a foot or so by the realtor's yard team the day before the move without any consulting with the owner. The tree in the new spot but some leaves are yellowing and dropping. Initially was watered in with some superthrive because I didn't have time to go get the vitamin B1. The owner of the tree feels the urge to fertilize it but of course I told them not to. I think after some struggle and alot of leave drop the tree should be OK. When will it be appropriate to apply fertilizer again?
If the tree is to be pruned either before or after a transplant I prefer to have it done before the move is made. The tree will tell you when it is ready for fertilizer. When the leaves become turgid again and once the tree is pushing out new growth then you can fertilize it with a low level Nitrogen if need be, no more than a 6% N formulation for a granular fertilizer and a quarter to half strength for a liquid application such as MiracleGro. Some people will roll the dice and fertilize with Nitrogen soon after a transplant and can get lucky but the odds are that more people will not be so fortunate and will cause more harm than good. It might be best just to wait until December now to give this tree any Nitrogen with our warmer temperatures starting this week. If the tree has to be fertilized go with a Bandini brand 0-10-10 that you or the owners can get at your nearby Home Depot. Apply about 1-1 ½ pounds of 0-10-10 no less than 2’ in a circle from the base of the tree in about a month when the tree seems to have recovered from the initial shock of being transplanted. Right now settling in and adequate moisture but not over watering is most important for this tree. Jim
