A crowding problem necessitates either discarding, or transplanting, a 15-year-old Honey Murcott. I have an ideal place to relocate it but I have never transplanted a mature tree. Soil is sandy and would require some amendment I think. Could someone give me advice on this procedure, or, should I just discard the tree. It is very productive, and the fruit is typical Murcott – very sweet. I would like keep the tree if there is a reasonable chance of success. Thank, Phil

I'm sorry I can't really answer your question directly but maybe I can offer a suggestion. Have you considered leaving it and cropping the sides where it is running out of room? I've heard some growers plant closer to expedite production and when the trees get too big they treat them as a hedge row.

The sandy soil,might be a problem,but i would say remove it with a large root ball,ive seen this done on very large trees and works! basic:-removing the
tree ,roots and soil in a round big ball ,digging round the outside of a root mass.Mybe 3x2feet for a tree your size,and cut it with a spade under the bottom.Best not to rush the job,not to disturb the soil in the rootball!check out the web first!!!

Thanks much for your input.

"Root ball" may be a problem. When I planted all my citrus, I amended the very sandy (Northeast Florida) soil with a commercial potting soil, along with some peat moss (about 50-50) – not too much to be continuously wet, but enough to hold sufficient moisture and nutrients for plant health – which worked, maybe too much. This spring, when digging up my freeze-killed Key Lime (all my trees are in-ground) the soil completely fell off the roots, so I anticipate the same thing with the Murcott. Is a bare-root transplant likely to succeed? Having never tried a bare-root mature-tree transplant is why I need a dose of reality, lessons learned, and instruction.

As for leaving it alone, I’m already trimming adjacent grapefruit and orange trees. All three trees are getting too large for continued health, so thinning is a must. I planted these trees when I first moved to Florida and didn’t take into consideration plant spacing as a function of citrus variety. So now I pay the price for early exuberance.

I've researched transplanting, but literature addresses young plants. What is common though is transplanting it soon while it is still dormant, which means harvesting the fruit and a major pruning. My trees start flushing in late February/early March. Advice?

I've had success with root pruning a few months before transplanting. That way there isn't as much transplant shock. Bare root is fine. Transplanting is best done in cool weather. The bigger the tree the more problems.

Be sure to trim the branches down a lot. You need to remove a sufficient amount of leaves in particular to account for the lost roots or there will be too much moisture loss through the leaves and not enough taken in through the roots.

Unless it MUST go then I would just leave it there and trim it. Plants don't like to be moved. That's why they're plants, not animals.

The hedgerow comment above is right on, growers are moving to short, high density plantings for many types of fruit trees, including types you may not consider, like olives.

Transplant as soon as the soil is warm enough and remove the fruit for the first year or two so the plant can focus on root and shoot growth.

Phil,

You mentioned the age but not the size and that is really what will make the difference. Any amendments that you made when planted have long ago washed through our Florida sand but that is not a bad thing. Citrus in FL prefer a sand that is non organic. I'm thinking that this has something to do with the commercialization of citrus through hybridization and breeding. The current line of thinking is to not enrich you sand just make sure you feed them. The available highly refined cultivars like well drained deep sandy conditions since they are prone to root infections, rot and other viruses. They are like a high maintenance (man or woman) they don’t like to get muddy! LOL

If hedging isn't to your liking here is another alternative. Buy a new replacement and plant it in your new ideal spot. Tolerate your old friend till you can take it no more and then put him down. If you research the hedging idea you can probably get a few more years out of him. Maybe by that time your new friend can take over production tasks.

I'm guessing that your 15 year old tree is at least ten feet tall and wide. I don't see a successful move without some heroic efforts. IMHO that would call for a 50% root prune now. Not cutting 50% of each root but take half of the roots and cut them back leaving the other half uncut. This prune would be well inside your dig line for the transplant. The idea is to allow regrowth of new feeder roots close to the trunk so that when you dig it you won't have all fresh cut roots on the outside of the rootball. Cutting that much of the root system will require a 50 % cut of the topside too. At least you will be able to reshape your tree to your liking. As with the roots you will be developing a new tighter tree for the transplant. Citrus trees are fussy about their feet. You might want to consider some type of preventative soil drench after you cut the roots. If you do this now the plant will start regenerating growth of the roots and then in spring the branches should start to flush out. If all goes well you might be able to attempt transfer in early winter, as in next winter. Before transplanting cut the other 50% of the roots and the topside. I fully expect most of your soil/sand to fall off. Have your new hole prepped and ready and get the tree planted as quickly as you can.

It might work. I'm thinking it will have a 40% chance.

I have worked with plants, not professionally, for 35 years BUT I am a Citrus rookie. Not even qualified to be an amateur yet. I hope something will work out for you.

You mentioned your concern about the health of your trees and that is part of the reason for the move. Maybe if we knew the layout and had some pictures it would help us help you. Extra food and water may help a lot.

I agree that the likelihood of a successful transplant is not very good. I pulled a 10 year old tree out of the ground with a backhoe and tried to replant it. It didn't work. I originally had not planned on replanting but thought what the heck, I may as well try.

I grow most of my citrus on very sandy to almost pure sand soil. This might be strange, but I found sand is your best friend on a move like this. When moving a couple of my larger trees, I found that bare-root was the best way. I was able to dig and wash the trees free of sand very easy and then move. If they had been in clay or other soil there would have been no way to move such a large amount of weight that was needed for the root-ball. I was able to save a large amount of the roots in the moves and all of my trees recovered in a couple of years.

As the above post, I did the following.

Root-prune a month before
Prune the top back to match the root-ball
Cool weather only
Work fast to remove and replace.
Water well for a week before the move, you do not want a brittle tree
Mulched well after the move, keep the moisture level.

I used a backhoe and strap to hold up the tree, then dug and washed the roots free. Drove the tree to the new hole and filled the with the soil that was removed from that hole. I did not or would not use any amendments to the planting.

Selkirk

As to root pruning, is this done in-ground? Do you simply cut the roots with a sand shovel and wait a few weeks, then make the move? Or is this done once the tree is out of the ground? I've root pruned pot bound plants before but this is the first time I've run across the issue relative to trees.

Plan to take all the above points and put together a strategy and plan. Will post for final comment. Also plan to put up pictures.

The root pruning is done with a shovel and needs to be done now. Remember to prune the roots in a smaller circle than what you intend to dig up. Newly generated roots then will be dug up and transplanted at transplant time.