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I have been asked about the realities/ possibilites of selling trees that are in the ground. The person in question has several thousand mixed hardwoods af about 8-10 years old, mostly ash, oak and cherry from what i have seen, and ranging in hight from 10- 20 foot depending on shade conditions. They are spaced approximately 1.2 metres apart, and need thinning. I was asked what are the realities of digging up and selling trees in these conditions.
Any help or guidance appreciated.

Easy if you invest in the right tools for the job. Suggest going to a professional grower in the first place to see how it is done commercially. Even simple things like bark protection can make a big difference.

Yep, buy a tree spade and print off a catalogue of prices!

Essentially what your man has there is a nursery... be careful with the roots though, they'll need to be spaded out and then wrapped in hessian for transport.

the idea of buying the tree spade was suggested by him. He certainly has the funds to do it. I think he would rather sell wholesale if that is possible

they could do with undercutting this winter, then selling next years planting season, undercutting severs the roots that are heading for the hills and makes them easier to rootball when the time comes. (done with a machine)

In that case, you could suggest the owner contacts one of the bigger players like kings or someone like that about selling the whole lot standing and letting them do the hard work

As Matt say Tom, if he wants minimum hassle then thats the way to go but the money wont be as good.
The trees might seem ok as a group but they might have some stragglers amongst.
Great oppertunity for you i think, get him to invest in a little tractor with tree spade and get you to manage the plantation. Stick a big sign up and sell privately. You have the landy and trailer and the knowledge and expertise to carry out a really nice professional job.
I love planting trees if the customer doesnt mind spending the appropriatte money.

I think thaty may be his preferred option, he is willing to take a hit on the price. He didnt plant them, and would rather get some return than just thinning and chipping them, even if that is lower than the market value.

There are deffo some stragglers, especially where large oaks abd ashes have cast shadow, and I saw a fair few failed ones. In one patch sheep have got to them and nibbled the bark quite badly (his neighbours sheep) so it isnt prime crop. Unfortunately.....its in shropshire!
He does have the advantage of there being several thousand to choose from. There is a large stand of poplar at the back which have reached a fair size. I would imagine the best thing would be biomass for these?