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A tree spade is a specialized machine that mechanizes the 
A typical machine consists of a number of blades (generally 3 or 4, but single or dual blade designs also exist) that encircle the tree, digging into the ground and then lifting the entire tree, including its roots and soil (in what is termed a "root ball"), out of the ground and replanting or transplanting the whole tree in the designated area. Similar machines can also be used for placing trees in pots or baskets for commercial tree nursery operations. Tree spades are available in a wide variety of sizes and designs that are made to suit varied soil conditions and customer requirements. Typical design variations can include straight vs curved blades, root ball diameter, root ball depth, and root ball cone angle.
The machines can be mounted on a tractor or loader for moving trees a short distance, or on the back of a truck for relocating trees over the highway a long distance away. For tree nursery operations, tree spades are also sometimes mounted on excavators, though this is less common due to the weight capacity requirements of manipulating the machine along with an excavated tree. For transport on public roads, the spade tilts the tree to a near-horizontal position in order to clear overhead bridges and cables.
A 'tree moving machine' was patented by Howard E. Crawford, of Detroit (Redford Township) in 1961. The patent application was in February of 1958 and the patent was approved and published on July 4, 1961.
The first tree spade at Opitz was built in 1971. Special machinery in tree nursery did exist before including the treedigger variants which are still more common to transplant smaller trees.
100in Curved Blade Tree Spade
on YouTube Agricultural machinery Forestry equipment {{Tool-stub
A tree spade is a specialized machine that mechanizes the transplanting
In agriculture and gardening, transplanting or replanting is the technique of moving a plant from one location to another. Most often this takes the form of starting a plant from seed in optimal conditions, such as in a greenhouse or protected n ...
of large plant
Plants are the eukaryotes that form the Kingdom (biology), kingdom Plantae; they are predominantly Photosynthesis, photosynthetic. This means that they obtain their energy from sunlight, using chloroplasts derived from endosymbiosis with c ...
s whose hand-powered transplanting (using traditional spade
A spade is a tool primarily for digging consisting of a long handle and blade, typically with the blade narrower and flatter than the common shovel. Early spades were made of riven wood or of animal bones (often shoulder blades). After the a ...
s, wagons, and other equipment) would be prohibitively laborious. These include large bushes
A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...
and small or medium tree
In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...
s. By bringing mechanized power to what was formerly only a manual process, tree spades do for transplanting what tractor
A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a Trailer (vehicle), trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or constructio ...
s and combine harvester
The modern combine harvester, also called a combine, is a machine designed to harvest a variety of cultivated seeds. Combine harvesters are one of the most economically important labour-saving inventions, significantly reducing the fraction of ...
s do for agriculture
Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
, and what excavator
Excavators are heavy equipment (construction), heavy construction equipment primarily consisting of a backhoe, boom, dipper (or stick), Bucket (machine part), bucket, and cab on a rotating platform known as the "house".
The modern excavator's ...
s and other heavy equipment
Heavy equipment, heavy machinery, earthmovers, construction vehicles, or construction equipment, refers to heavy-duty vehicles specially designed to execute construction tasks, most frequently involving earthwork operations or other large con ...
do for construction
Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...
. Today, tree spades are widely used in the tree nursery industry to increase production rates, and in the landscaping industry for tree removal and transplanting.
A typical machine consists of a number of blades (generally 3 or 4, but single or dual blade designs also exist) that encircle the tree, digging into the ground and then lifting the entire tree, including its roots and soil (in what is termed a "root ball"), out of the ground and replanting or transplanting the whole tree in the designated area. Similar machines can also be used for placing trees in pots or baskets for commercial tree nursery operations. Tree spades are available in a wide variety of sizes and designs that are made to suit varied soil conditions and customer requirements. Typical design variations can include straight vs curved blades, root ball diameter, root ball depth, and root ball cone angle.
The machines can be mounted on a tractor or loader for moving trees a short distance, or on the back of a truck for relocating trees over the highway a long distance away. For tree nursery operations, tree spades are also sometimes mounted on excavators, though this is less common due to the weight capacity requirements of manipulating the machine along with an excavated tree. For transport on public roads, the spade tilts the tree to a near-horizontal position in order to clear overhead bridges and cables.
A 'tree moving machine' was patented by Howard E. Crawford, of Detroit (Redford Township) in 1961. The patent application was in February of 1958 and the patent was approved and published on July 4, 1961.
The first tree spade at Opitz was built in 1971. Special machinery in tree nursery did exist before including the treedigger variants which are still more common to transplant smaller trees.
See also
*Transplanting
In agriculture and gardening, transplanting or replanting is the technique of moving a plant from one location to another. Most often this takes the form of starting a plant from seed in optimal conditions, such as in a greenhouse or protected n ...
References
External links
* " Digging trees and shrubs for transplanting" on Wikibooks100in Curved Blade Tree Spade
on YouTube Agricultural machinery Forestry equipment {{Tool-stub