Hydraulic spade transplanters are powerful yet portable machines that make short work of tree transplanting.

Some custom models can handle tree trunk diameters in excess of 18 inches. Arkansas-based Big John Transplanter Mfg. Inc. makes several production models that can handle tree girths up to a foot with relative ease. These are serious tools that can propel medium and large-sized contractors into the lucrative field of big tree transplantation.

Here?EUR??,,????'???s a look at some steps involved in transplanting trees with big hydraulic spades.

The tree is positioned with the trunk in the center of each blade before the closing of the unit?EUR??,,????'???s hydraulically-powered gate. Photo courtesy Big John Mfg. Inc.

When the tree is raised, it is ready to be ferried to its new home. Trees this size require months of prepping with careful irrigation and fertilization. Photo courtesy Environmental Design, www.treemover.com

The cycle is complete when all blades are inserted to their maximum depth. At this point the tree and root ball are ready to be extracted from the ground. Photo courtesy John Gaudreault and Big John Mfg. Inc.

The unit?EUR??,,????'???s spades are inserted into the ground one-at-a-time hydraulically. A single operator contrals the procedure from a point opposite this view.

Huge trees, like this ancient oak, are sometimes jacked onto large dollies and transported to nearby locations when development projects alter a landscape. Photo courtesy Environmental Design, www.treemover.com

Tree Facts

137: Number of trees relocated at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington as a result of a construction project. The majority of the trees had a trunk span of two to 12 inches.

13,000: Dollars, the cost of moving the 137 trees to areas on campus not affected by the construction project. Source: UNC-Wilmington