She Finds New Homes For Mature Trees

She Finds New Homes For Mature Trees MISCELLANEOUS EQUIPMENT Earth Movers Denise Vidosh finds buyers for mature trees and moves them to new homes Her company Re-Tree is an online market for trees that have outgrown their location “I’m the daughter of a pioneer landscaper who believed in repurposing mature plants ” says Vidosh “We now have the tools we need to transplant mature trees ” The Re-Tree website was launched in June of 2021 and by November 287 very large trees had been listed and sold “The largest tree I’ve moved had a diameter of 14 in and a price tag of $18 000 ” says Vidosh The tool that makes relocation possible is the AirSpade It was originally developed for utility companies but is ideal for clearing dirt from roots www airspade com; ph 800-482-7324 Vidosh and her crews trench around a tree with an AirSpade and then blow the dirt away from the roots The process retains 85 percent of the root system and eliminates a third of the weight “We can move a mature tree any time of the year with the AirSpade complete with its foliage ” says Vidosh Vidosh gets referrals of mature trees with the potential to be moved from her network of landscape and arborist professionals Trees must be qualified as free of disease and structural issues and accessible without overhead wires or excessive underground utilities Once it’s qualified she gives the owner an appraisal and if they sign a listing agreement she posts the tree on the Re-Tree website “We have several thousand on the site ” she says “We list them free but take a transaction fee of 20 to 30 percent of the value of the tree when it is sold Contacts who referred the tree also get a fee ” Re-Tree and its website are still in beta form and Vidosh asks FARM SHOW readers to be patient when accessing it She suggests they call with questions and emphasizes her market for Re-Tree is limited by how far a tree can be moved “The closer we can move a tree from A to B is less time for the roots to dry out ” says Vidosh “We’ve successfully moved bare root trees within 300 to 400 miles of home ” She recently did a case study for two properties that had about 80 ginkgo trees between 6 and 8 in in diameter on about 10 acres “They’re very valuable but have outgrown their locations ” says Vidosh “I estimated their value at upward of $225 000 I offered to replace them with appropriately sized trees and put an additional $100 000 back in their pocket ” Trees on the Re-Tree site list from several hundred dollars to several thousand or more A Waterfall Japanese Maple was listed at $6 000 Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Re-Tree 850 Featherstone St Ste 202 Pontiac Mich 48342 ph 517-545-5067; cathy@re-tree org; www re-tree org

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