Been Airspading

[Scottie]

I am in the middle of an airspading job in Sunderland town center, airspading around 7 street trees. My question of the night is: what is the proper way to airspade? Do you just break up the top layer of compacted soil? Do you keep going until you have exposed the roots?

 

All I have been doing is breaking up the top 100-120mm of soil, which has been a mixture of stones, soil and concrete. Then thrown on fert, airspading that in then some more fert, a rake over and it looks good. Tomorrow we will be adding tree start to give the soil some substance to make it look like soil a bit.

 

After all that work the townscapers want to put a resin down over the soil to level the soil to the height of the pavement. I am amazed that the trees have survived as some of them have been palnted too deeply and while I have been airspading I have been exposing the buttress. So if there are any tips I will be glad to try them out.

 

Cheers

[AA Teccie (Paul)]

I am in the middle of an airspading job in Sunderland town center, airspading around 7 street trees. My question of the night is: what is the proper way to airspade? Do you just break up the top layer of compacted soil? Do you keep going until you have exposed the roots?

 

All I have been doing is breaking up the top 100-120mm of soil, which has been a mixture of stones, soil and concrete. Then thrown on fert, airspading that in then some more fert, a rake over and it looks good. Tomorrow we will be adding tree start to give the soil some substance to make it look like soil a bit.

 

After all that work the townscapers want to put a resin down over the soil to level the soil to the height of the pavement. I am amazed that the trees have survived as some of them have been palnted too deeply and while I have been airspading I have been exposing the buttress. So if there are any tips I will be glad to try them out.

 

Cheers

 

HI Scottie...'good job!'

 

I don't have any direct experience of air spading but increasingly arb contractors are undertaking this operation which, in principle, I think is a real move forward in urban tree care...our colleagues over 'the pond' have been doing it for years..!

 

In terms of how deep to go I guess that's dictated, at least in part, by the reason behind the operation. If it is principally to relieve compaction then I guess you go as far as needed to break the pan (compacetd zone) so it sounds to me like your pretty much 'spot on'.

 

Be interested to know how much better the trees look this summer.

 

Gud'on'ya..!

 

Paul

[Lee Winger]

I am in the middle of an airspading job in Sunderland town center, airspading around 7 street trees. My question of the night is: what is the proper way to airspade? Do you just break up the top layer of compacted soil? Do you keep going until you have exposed the roots?

 

All I have been doing is breaking up the top 100-120mm of soil, which has been a mixture of stones, soil and concrete. Then thrown on fert, airspading that in then some more fert, a rake over and it looks good. Tomorrow we will be adding tree start to give the soil some substance to make it look like soil a bit.

 

After all that work the townscapers want to put a resin down over the soil to level the soil to the height of the pavement. I am amazed that the trees have survived as some of them have been palnted too deeply and while I have been airspading I have been exposing the buttress. So if there are any tips I will be glad to try them out.

 

Cheers

 

No disrespect but you can do a fair amount of damage to a tree with an Air-Spade and especially if your ''throwing on fert'' if you don't have the experience or really know what your doing.

 

One tip never Air-Spade or decompact a trees entire rootzone for obvious reasons..........