A mole is not likely to "tear up" the roots. What do you think that it's going to do?

I guess I'm worried about it pushing up the soil around or under the tree (I have some winterberry seedlings planted in that area that the mole keeps pushing over in its quest for grubs/worms). The tree is quite larger than the seedlings though.

I've never dealt with a mole before, so I'm not sure how disruptive they can be to newly planted things.

Not really disruptive at all. In fact, I work hard to convince my clients that they should be happy to have a mole visit them!! Other than the extremely insignificant aesthetic disturbance of some mounds in the lawn, moles are really garden helpers - they aerate the soil and improve drainage, they mix up and distribute soil nutrients and they rid the soil and the garden of a great many harmful insects, including slugs, snails and Japanese beetle and crane fly larvae.

And they are cute in their little squinty-eyed way.

Usually a mole means you have grubs. Get rid of the grubs and the mole will move on. There are a thousand ways to get rid of a mole. Pick the way you like and do it.

Red

You would need to get rid of a whole lot more than just grubs to discourage a mole. They will hunt and consume just about any soil dwelling insect or larvae, including worms, slugs and snails, centipedes, ants and even soil dwelling bees and wasps. And if you got rid of all that biology, you would have a very sterile and lifeless soil and an unhealthy garden.

btw, the "thousands" of ways to get rid of moles tend to be mostly old wives tales and gardening myths that have minimal presence in reality. The only sure way of getting rid of a mole is by trapping.

The people that make a lot of money selling things to control moles keep repeating the mantra that moles eat grubs because most people know, intuitively, that earthworms are good even though they are the moles most favoritist food. Selling a product that would poison earthworms would probably not do well. There is a whole industry built upon the idea that you are a really bad person if you do not do something about the mole you have in your yard.
Do not be concerned since moles eat insects not plants, although they may sometimes uproot a plant.

the concern.. is a non sequitur ...

just plant the darn tree ...

and deal with the mole separately ...

there ought to be a couple thousand mole topics if you use the GW search ...

i am not of the camp.. that they are touchy feely creatures that benefit my life.. and my twisted ankle proves such ... they can all rot in mole hell ... lol ... but i digress ... lol ...

ken

ps: i would NEVER plant a tree in late july/august.. in my MI z5 ... just because you buy it.. or obtain it.. does not mean that is the best planting time.. it depends where you are.. and the ambient weather.. or whether you are gal .. lol ... its not that it cant be done.. i am talking about your experience level.. and making it easy ... you could discuss that in the tree forum if you wish ...

Here is a link that might be useful: link