Posthole Digger using post hole digger to plant shrubs

[m3rd]

I am thinking of buying a post hole digger for my limited cat 1 tractor to plant small trees and shrubs . Also to use to some degree as a back hoe by "drilling" multiple holes and then scooping out dirt with a shovel or the front loader.

Has anyone tried this? I have clay type soil with rocks.

Thanks.

 

[Cliff_Johns]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( my limited cat 1 tractor )</font>

Which tractor do you have? In what way is thr hitch limited? Different manufacturers use this term to mean different things.

But to answer your question, there are several members who do this sort of thing.

Cliff

 

[Tdog]

Yes, I've used my phd to dig a hole for moderate sized shurbs. I have a 9" auger - - if the hole is not large enough, it's a small matter to enlarge with a [yuk] shovel or manual phd. I do have a back hoe, but that seems like overkill for small plants. Sure have used it for planting trees, however.

 

[bubenberg]

we use the post hole diggers all the time to plant trees and bushes. just one little advice after drilling the holes. most often the sides of the holes get very hard for the roots to penetrate; so please take a spade and just slightly roughen up all side to facilitate root growth.

good luck
an old ag. prof. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[m3rd]

I have a Bolens HT23 with FEL which has a Cat 0 TPH. I am considering buying a BX23 since I have a (11) large 7' rhodos to transplant, stumps to pull, and trees to plant. In the near future will be needing to redo the driveway and possibly an addition to the house. Backhoe would be handy for these tasks.

Just trying to determine if I can justify the BX23 outlay vs getting a PHD for my HT23 and contracting out the other work.

 

[NY_Yankees_Fan]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I have a (11) large 7' rhodos to transplant, stumps to pull, and trees to plant. )</font>

I would be the last one not to tell you to buy a BX /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gifBUT it looks like a few weekends of work with a backhoe rental unit for the planting and contracting out the other stuff. The BX is a fine tractor but you maybe asking too much of it to dig a foundation. Yea it can be done but will take a very long time. BUT it sure would be fun to have all that seat time. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[alco141]

i have put in about 400 trees with my worksaver 3pt hitch post hole digger with a 12" auger, works like a charm, even if you have a large root ball to deal with, just drill a couple of holes that are touching and scoop out the extra dirt to make a larger hole for the root ball. i have glacial till soil with a large amount of rock and heavy clay. i put in about 12 rose bushes , mulched the garden with bark in about 2 1/2 hours, one day while my wife was away. she was pleasantly suprised when she got home, i never could have done that by hand in this soil.

alex

 

[gcrabb]

m3rd,

I have planted 30 or so 8' maples with 18" root ball in just a few hours with an 18" augar.

On another instance I planted 100 24" bareroot trees in about 4 hours with a 9" augar.

I use a backhoe when the trees get bigger.

The right tool for the job makes it significantly easier, before I had the post whole digger and other tools, it took me a couple days to plant 150 trees.

What seems to take the most time for me is mapping out where I want the trees.

JD4600 with 460FEL with grapple fork, pallet fork and 7'6" Western Snow Plow, JD LX279, 84" KK finishing mower, 84" KK Landscape Box, 84" KK Landscape Rake, 84" KK Blade, and 72" KK Bush Hog, 7' Northern Tool Backhoe, Bri Mar 6X10 Dump Trailer, 20' Rugged Road Equipment Trailer.

Greg

 

[RalphVa]

Lots of folks with Gravelys have used the Gravely rotary plow to dip holes to plant trees and shrubs. It's sorta like an 18" to 2' diameter pole hole digger.

I'd follow Bubenberg's advice to rough up the sides of the hole a bit with a bar or skinny shovel, to allow root penetration into the compacted sides of the hole. The hole mainly needs to be 2 to 3 times the root ball, only deep enough to put the tree/shrub at the proper depth.

Ralph

 

[bluejay]

Beware if you have rocks, it will stop digging when it hits a rock about 2" and larger.

 

[m3rd]

Thank you for your helpful replies. I think the PHD would certainly be better than digging by hand (it usually takes me 30 min to dig a hole for a moderately sized schrub due to all the rocks). But I can see how rocks can impede progress. With I back hoe you can dig the rock out.

Does anyone know how well the augers wear?; eg. when do I need to replace the cutters.

Thanks

 

[MMM]

On my 24", the flighting is serrated. The sides of the hole are nicely scuffed. Might could do a little of your own with a torch. It doesn't leave as clean of a hole for posts though.

 

[JD3130]

When I moved to the ranch, I talked to a number of nursery experts about using the PHD for making the holes. They were all against it, in our hard soil here in south TX. A round hole tends to cause the roots to grow in a circle as if they are in a pot. They all suggested a square hole. But, being a lazy fellow, I used the PHD anyway. I drill three hole as close together as I can. Then break out the middle with the hand digger. Works great. Roots can go in all directions. (Note. Don't get them too close, if you break from one hole to another, you can break your pin, took me a couple to learn that one. Have fun!!

 

[Holzster]

I have done it MANY times - just remember not to dig to deep as then the tree/shrub will settle & the tree/shrub will be to deep & could die. Best to dig the last 2-4 inches by hand.

 

[bubenberg]

thanks, happy holidays /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[alco141]

post hole digger safety,

remember to stay away from the shaft and auger when turning, stay on the tractor seat!!!!, this is one of the most dangerous implements you can own. there are a lot of injuries from people trying to force these things. if you hit a rock, dont try to bull your way through you will jst break a pin, gently move the auger up and down, many times you will find a way around the rock, and i have seen some 6 inch rocks come flying out of the auger with pretty good force, landing 30-40 feet away. so stand clear of the auger. all in all i have been very pleased with the performance of the auger in doing the tasks you mention i think you will be amazed as to the speed that you can make holes and plant. as far as the digging points, i replace the three cutting edges once after 350 holes. i have not replaced the digging point so far, i bought extra cutting edges and have them in the shop when needed.

be safe,
alex

 

[Bob_Skurka]

Using a 12" auger bit I just planted 11 spruce trees ranging from 3' to 6' tall. Soil is hard clay, but no rocks. I dig the holes slightly deeper than the root ball, and I make sure to take a shovel to score or gouge the sides of the holes. I also dig multiple holes, in a triangular pattern and shten scoop out the spoils in the middle with a shovel. If you rock the tractor front & rear slighly while digging the holes, it breaks up the center section between the holes so scooping it out with the shovel is very easy work.

I used to dig down as far as the auger would go and then fill with better soil, compost, etc but I had some problems with plants sinking too far. None of mine died, but several sank. Starting last year I dig only a few inches deeper than the root ball and amend the soil at that point.

If the plants are small, make sure to rough up the sides of the hole so that the roots don't end up "pot bound" inside that hole. The auger bit, especially in clay, can actually polish the sides of the hole and effectively trap the roots inside the hole stunting the plants growth. I like using the PHD because it breaks up the soil making backfilling easier. With my clay soil, I find a BH lifts out a large clump that then has to be broken up (beaten with a shovel!!!) to be used for back fill.

 

[MMM]

It also creates a berm for watering/starter solution. I have marked my nursery auger for correct depth ( All my grafted trees come in identical pots).

 

[RalphVa]

I once rented one of those 2 man post hole diggers (powered by a motor) in NJ with lots of rocks. We dug until the digger about knocked us both over. We'd exit the hole and go on to the next while the wife got the rock(s) out with a long digger bar. Then we'd come back to the hole to finish it.

Did the entire fence around our pool there that way. It was still up near 20 years later when we sold and moved to Singapore.

Ralph

 

[Bob_Skurka]

<font color="red"> I once rented one of those 2 man post hole diggers . . . We dug until the digger about knocked us both over. </font>

The lovely Mrs_Bob and I did that once too. That was how I learned that I needed a tractor!