Need to Move Patio Peach Tree....is it possible?

13 years ago

Hello,

I am hoping to get some opinions/insight on moving a Bonfire Patio Peach tree that is on my property. The previous owners planted it in the far corner of our front yard, and it's just out there by itself. I had thought of doing a bed around it, but it would make it too tight to mow around.

The same previous homeowners planted 2 cherry trees on each side of our porch. They told us they were dwarf, but 6 years have passed and they are taller than the house, and rubbing the windows and gutters!

All of that said.....We will be removing the cherry trees this fall, and I would like to move the patio peach to one of the cherry tree spots. It is a perfect height for next to the house, and is a full mature tree. Probably not more than 5ft. tall.

How could we move it without doing major damage or killing it?

Thanks in advance for your input!

Annie

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Comments (4)

gardningrandma
13 years ago
If it's as big as it sounds, a mature size, it really requires a mechanical tree spade. There's services that offer tree moving and you would want to consult with them. Even with a tree spade there is a chance the trees won't survive transplant.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
i would not go thru all that work for anything bigger than about a 4 footer ..

when i could go spend less than $100 on some very nice potted stock that i could plant in about 20 minutes ...

too much work.. for too low odds..

otherwise.. move the tree in fall when it losses its leaves.. or in spring as soon as the ground thaws in early april ...

ken

ps: so.. it was 5 foot this spring .... then grew ... yes??? .. how much this summer.. and you think it will still be about 5 foot next year???? ... though it might have a slower growth rate than a non-dwarf tree.. it had to have grown this year.. and it probably will for the rest of your life ...

never forget.. if a regular peach tree is near say.. 50 feet.. a mere dwarf of her.. might only grow to 25 feet ... with half the annual growth rate..

perhaps you are mistaken that it will stay at 5 feet forever ....
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It LOOKS as though in past years, someone tried to train the peach as a fruiting peach would be trained - low branches, with an open center, but that the training was not kept up for whatever reason. If you don't want a "production" fruit tree, then I would suggest removing it, not for fear of topping it, but because the lines running through it are a continuing danger - more so if electric, and less so if phone, but they could interrupt your service if a branch breaks. It would be nice to know if the lines (power, telephone, whatever?) that are visible are also growing through the middle of the tree or not. If they are, and they are power lines, I would suggest that you get a certified arborist or the power co. to come trim the tree - they are trained to work around electricity, have the equipment and have the insurance to deal with any mishaps, although the power co. may not be noted for excellence in tree-trimming. If that is not in your budget (power co. shouldn't charge for it, at least not around here, they don't), then I can only say to be EXTREMELY CAREFUL - my advice truly is to NOT DO ANYTHING TO THE TREE yourself. If it's telephone lines, you still need to be careful, but not to the extreme that electric lines call for - you can still get hurt, but it is much less likely to be fatal. Despite what Rhizo says, the training of a production fruit tree is NOT the same as the training of an ornamental tree. They CAN be similar, but may not have the same aims in mind and may not use the same criteria for what is "good" training/pruning and what is not. Sticking to the principle to remove no more than a third of a tree's canopy at one time, I would, looking at the top photo, take off the upper branch on the right hand side which is growing back into the center of the tree. I would shorten the left hand branch back by about half, and maybe tidy out any minor crossing or rubbing branches, but leave it for this year. Next spring, I would take both sides back further, until you have a tree shape you can live with, maybe taking a couple of years to be done, since only a quarter to a third of the canopy should come off annually. Follow the rest of the basic good pruning principles as well - never cut a branch directly overhead; have assistance; keep your tools clean and sharp; don't leave stubs; cut using the 3-cut principle for large branches so as not to tear bark - make cut number one about 1' beyond where your final cut will be, cutting from below to about halfway through, make cut #2 beyond that by a few inches, cutting from above and taking off the branch, then make your final cut, taking the stub off to the trunk or to a larger branch. I would advise you to get hold of a book (or two) on pruning orchard trees - if there are any practical demonstrations offered (county extension office, community college, local orchard, etc.) I would suggest you go, as doing/seeing it is worth many words, photos and diagrams.
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markstrees
13 years ago
If you would trash the tree anyway, i would go ahead and try, but i am a sucker for rescueing trees.
If you want to try. take a sharp spade and cut a circle around the base of the tree, about 18 inches out from trunk, asap
This will encourage root growth inside the pruned area.
Then after leaf drop in the late fall, prune it back hard so that the branches dont reach much beyond the circle you cut earlier, finish digging it up, hoist it out of the hole, be careful not to lift it by the trunk, and place it in the space that you want it to grow. using good planting practices there.
I have moved may trees this way with little problem.
Keep in mind however that peach trees often are not that long lived no matter what, so choose wisely.
You can e-mail me if you want more detail,
markstrees@hotmail.com
brandon7 TN_zone7
13 years ago
I would strongly recommend against cutting the tree back hard, as Mark had suggested. Current understanding of tree physiology indicates that trees establish much more quickly and suffer less stress if not cut back (except in some cases of unusually severe root loss). If a proper rootball is dug (a reasonable amount of root system remains with the tree), the tree will be more likely to survive and establish more quickly if not cut back. The tree will need all of its foliage to produce food to supply proper root growth and doesn't need the extra burden of having to cover over a bunch of unnecessary wounds. Also, by removing a significant amount of top growth, you increase the root to shoot ratio, which further inhibits root growth. By moving the tree in its dormant state (between fall and early spring), the concern of moisture loss from foliage, immediately following transplant, is greatly reduced and there is even less reason to even consider unnecessary pruning.

If you watch a professional tree moving company move a large tree, you won't see them cutting it back hard. They won't remove any of the topgrowth unless it is dead, diseased, rubbing, or in some way preventing physical access. I think this recommendation may have been based on "old school" thinking, which is unfortunately still followed all too often by homeowners and less up-to-date nurseries.

Need to Move Patio Peach Tree....is it possible?

Comments (4)

gardningrandma

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

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brandon7 TN_zone7

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