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David E. Ross · 28-09-2008, 06:30 PM posted to rec.gardens

On 9/27/2008 10:29 PM, wrote:
Is it possible to move oak tree that is few years old about 8 or 9 foot tall
and is about 2" at base? if so, how?

If this is a western oak (an oak native to the U.S. west of the Rocky
Mountains), do it this winter. Mature western oaks often fail to
survive transplanting.

If this is a western oak, be sure to cut the tap root when you dig it
out. Western oaks with tap roots generally cannot survive in garden
situations with summer water and any smaller plants within their root
zone. Nursery-grown oaks have their tap roots cut while seedlings or
saplings; this helps them to thrive in gardens.

I cut the tap root of my valley white oak (Quercus lobata) when it was a
seedling (which I sprouted from an acorn) being moved into a quart pot.
It developed a new tap root, which I also cut when I moved it into a
gallon can. It's now (32 years later) in the ground adjacent to a rose
bed, taller than my two-story house and with a trunk about 20 inches in
diameter. See my http://www.rossde.com/garden/garden_oak_acorn.html.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening pages at http://www.rossde.com/garden/