Stupid question ... If they were/are taged for destruction why not just dig 'em up and take 'em... unless they are/ were humongous, even if you damage the root system or severely pruned it to get it ( them) out there is /was a good chance they would transplant fine ..certainly more of a chance of survival than in the chipper ;.) David

David.....yes they are huge......There are four of them, and they all average six feet or so...... I will go back to see if they are still there with a shovel and pick in tow. : ) But seriously what are the chances with the cuttings???? I want to know if I should keep trying or toss them out. Thanks.

I have had little luck with cuttings ...from what I understand it can be done and some varieties are "easier" than others ...but it seems the enviorment is much more critical including temperature, humidity, soil tpe and moisture...but I personally have had little success with doing it ...hopefully others will have a bit more to say ...It has been discussed here in the past and seems doable but I don't think anything more than hypothetical ideas have been bantered around as well as those that have had similar "lacking" experiences like I have. Grafting is currently the most used ( common) way of propagating a "clone" of a parent JM tree but for your purposes it would be impracticle ...David

Ok David....you convinced me. : ) They are in the compost bin, and the pots are lined up to be cleaned with bleach water....I have a shovel,pick, and the help of my sister (husbands at work) and we are heading up that way to see if they are still there. : ) If they are and we get them out I will post it here to let you know. Thanks,David.........

OOPS!! It is probably too late but one additional instument you may need is a hand prunning saw or small chain saw ...Jm roots can get pretty large but if you dig out around the the tree, a ways, you can saw off the laterals as long as there is enough between the saw area and the tree ..it will make life easier ...same goes for any deeper roots. David

Ok....Its done! It took three trips, and two days, but they are out. Now whether they will live????????? But the way I look at is was they wouldnt have made it anyways. Oh my that sure was alot of work, and my back hurts. : ) I think we got most of the root system. Luckily I had my husbands help on most of them....... They lokk better then the first one that me and my sister got. : 0 And another thing.......when we were going after the second tree up come some city workers. ( I just knew I was in trouble. It is city property) They just told me and my husband to dig them up cause they will be gotten rid of next week! They just ask that we refill the holes.( yes that wasnt too easy. we came home and threw some top soil in the back of the truck and took it back up.) Thank you David.....I wouldnt have done this if it wernt for you. : ) I dont know if my husband is so thankful thou..Lol...

Wow am I impressed!!!!!!!

Essentially, you just saved lives, in my opinion!

Around here, there are two developers who run nurseries. They dig up trees and plants and shrubs you name it, burlap them and either reuse them or sell them. Their nurseries are very casual. Not many things are labeled, so you need to go in season. They are nursed back to health, though, if they need it. The good news is they sell the plants for a great discount.

These two, unrelated developers just can't stand to see beautiful things unnecessarily destroyed.
One's motto is "It takes God to make a tree" or something like that. The other's name is Second Chance Nursery.

My point in all that, :) , was that perhaps there might be someone in your area who does the same thing. Your husband's uniquely positioned to be able to key them in on some great, worthwhile plant material!

I wish you fabulous luck on your new trees. I always move my trees in November or December, because by spring their root systems have had several months of growing. They don't have to maintain, loose, and regrow foliage during this season.

You are great.

Christine

Name one of the trees after your husband ...that should make him happy . I am pretty sure they will do ok ...you may have a bit of shock the first season but it seems like you did more than needed ...more than the bare necessity anyway so you are probabably gonna see little or no problems IMHO... just be sure to leave no air pockets when planting ..( which is difficult with all those roots on a larger tree) and mulch well and only lighly water ...then water regularly next spring and summer if it's dry( if you get good rainfalls on a regular basis you may not need to) but DON'T overwater just enough to keep them from drying out.I probably wouldn't fertilize the first year but if you want to a low N fertilizer in early spring only and not too close to the tree...but as I said it is probably not nessesary ...Don't expect too much the first year but they should do just fine and of course report back on their progress... David

Good job Irish. You would be kicking yourself forever if you didn't at least try and save them from certain death.

The only thing I would add is to not plant them in a full sun spot even if those cultivars can usually handle it. The trees will probably need a year to add roots to keep up with the water loss and a full sun spot would put further stress on the trees.

Willis

Very nice job of rescuing the plants.

cfmuehling, I am also from the DC area. What nurseries carry these foundling plants?

Thank you all for the praise. * sigh* : ) But really David is the reason why I rescued them. I honestly thought they couldnt be moved, but he said it was worth a shot. Yes willis I did plant them in shade. Well one will get about three hours of direct sun, but its in the morning. And yes you are right. I would have kicked myself forever if I let such beautiful trees die a tragic death. Christine, yes I will check into that to see if their is a nursery like that in my area. The area we live in is growing by leaps and bounds. Because of that alot of acerage that just had one or two houses on it is being turned into subdivisions. My husband is in a unique position for sure. He has seen many trees and shrubs go in the chipper. He has also seen plants get bulldozed over. He didnt know what kind of trees these were, but he knew they were different. That is why he showed them to me. But I cant rescue all the plants that are getting destroyed almost daily. But I can defiently notify a nursery of property that is to be cleared, and let them know what plants are there. I would love to do that! David I will be posting here on their progress. So keep an eye on this post. It will be a while before I can give a progress report of course, but I WILL find this post to keep you updated. Many thanks to you all......Darla P.S. Im so glad I did go ahead and do this. Everyone on here who told me I was doing a good thing makes me feel even better for doing it. : )