pknoeber - 4/3/2010 18:02 To lift them you just need the pallet forks on a skid steer. Set the forks wide enough that they "grab" about 1/2 way up the ball. The ball should be quite a bit wider at the top than at the bottom. At the nursery I worked at we had a "squeeze" that looked like pallet forks, but 1 of the forks had a hydraulic ram that would pinch the ball in. That size tree I'd just hand dig the hole, then you can just drive the skid up to the hole, lower it in so the bottom of the ball will catch the lip,and back out. And if you don't want to hand dig, use the 3' auger. You don't want the hole much larger than the ball. If the ground is high clay content or super tight, score the edges to make sure the tree roots will penetrate into the walls. Plant the tree so the top of the ball is level w/ the surrounding ground. If you plant it to deep, you can make a water hole that can drown the tree out. As far as staking it, I would just put it wherever you're comfortable reaching up into on the trees. I planted 5 big maples (18'+ w/ 3.5-4" trunk) and I only had to stake 1 of them, and we get plenty of wind.

And I know some don't like this, but I just cut fold the burlap and wire basket back into the hole and push it down w/ the edge of the shovel so it's below ground level. Haven't had any problems yet. And get a digging shovel , it's a lot easier to dig with than a gooseneck . The gooseneck will clean out the hole better though.