How to Replant Oak Trees

Oak trees are easiest to transplant when they are seedlings.

It's called "the mighty oak" for a reason! Oaks can grow to be more than 100 feet tall, with towering crowns and rock-hard limbs. Even a five-inch seedling growing in your garden from an acorn left by a squirrel can be a stubborn individual to pull out, much less transplant. If you want to move an oak tree, do it before it's five feet tall, otherwise you'll have to call a tree service at considerable expense to move it with a tree spade. Transplant oaks in the fall when they are dormant, but before the ground freezes. This will reduce transplant shock to the tree and give it a better chance of survival.

Things You'll Need

• Garden gloves
• Shovel
• Wheelbarrow
• Bucket
• Water

Instructions

1. Choose a new location for the oak tree you wish to transplant. Look up to be sure the site is clear of overhead power lines. Find out where buried utility lines are located before you dig. Pick a spot that has rich, deep soil unimpeded by root systems from other plantings.

2. Put on garden gloves to prevent blisters. Dig the transplant hole nearly as deep as the tree is tall, since oak trees have long tap roots that need adequate space to be healthy.

3. Return to the oak you want to transplant. If the tree is three feet high, dig in a circle around it that is three feet in diameter. Push the shovel point into the dirt at a 30-degree angle and down toward the center of the circle to reach the tap root. Complete the circle and pry up gently. If you meet resistance from the tap root, dig deeper to get as much of it as possible.

4. Pry up gently until the oak tree comes loose. Grasp the trunk near the ground line and lift it out. Lift with you legs, not your back, to prevent injury. Place the tree in the wheelbarrow and move it to the transplant hole.

5. Fill a bucket with water and pour it in the bottom of the transplant hole to reduce transplant shock to the oak tree's roots. Lift the tree out of the wheelbarrow and place it in the hole. Lift it out again if the base of the trunk is below the ground line and backfill with dirt. Replace the tree and check. Repeat until the base of the trunk sits an inch above the ground line to allow for settling.

6. Check to see if the tree is standing straight and adjust it if necessary. Fill in with dirt on the sides and tamp down firmly as you go to close air spaces around the roots. Water thoroughly. Shovel the remaining dirt into the wheelbarrow and backfill the original hole. Water the transplanted oak frequently during the first year to help it establish new roots.

Tips & Warnings

• Don't worry if the tap root breaks. As long as you get most of it, the tree will survive. Prune lower branches after the first year to stimulate vertical growth.

• Don't fertilize oak trees, especially in the fall. Fertilizing trees when they are dormant will cause new growth late in the season that won't survive the winter.

References

• USDA Forest Service: Quercus alba: White Oak
• Purdue University: Planting & Transplanting Landscape Trees and Shrubs
• Cornell University: Creating the Urban Forest: The Bare Root Method

Resources

• University of California Berkeley: Common Oak Trees in California
• University of New Hampshire: Planting and Care of Tree Seedlings