It took a specialized crane, teamwork and muscle power to move a one tonne tree into its new home.

At Fallingwater, our motto is simple:

where there’s a will, there’s always a way.

One of our recent jobs presented quite the challenge. We had been called in to remove a dying Japanese Maple tree from the backyard of a Fairfield home and replace it with a mature and much larger Japanese Maple weighing close to 2,000 lbs.

The biggest stumbling block was access. Going around the house was not an option. The driveway was small and narrow, there were lots of power lines, and only a small gate led into the garden. There was no getting any machinery in and out. We needed a crane to lift this massive 15’ high and 15’ wide tree safely over the driveway and house, and not just any old crane. It had to be able to set up in very limited space, be large enough to do the lift, and have a reach of at least 110’ (the distance from the truck to the hole). 

The hunt began and perseverance paid off. Fallingwater’s Maintenance Manager Paul Grey consulted with five crane operators, none of which had the right equipment for our needs, until finally landing on Vic City Crane. Owner Matt MacKinnon came out to evaluate the site and knew immediately they could handle the job.

“Unlike large conventional cranes that are next to impossible to set up in small spaces, we use a very specialized crane that can. It is the only one of its kind in Canada,” explains Matt. “We do a lot of the tight space jobs.”

Once the crane was found – and we’re still amazed at the odds of finding this unique and highly specialized piece of machinery right here in Victoria – plans for the big move fell into place with Paul spearheading the project. Here’s a quick look at who was involved, why the Japanese Maple, and how we ensured replanting success.

about two years ago

The homeowner in our story purchased the Fairfield property with the intention to tear down and rebuild. He contracted Bianca Bodley, owner of Biophilia Design Collective, to do the landscape design. Together they toured the property identifying trees of significance to save, one of which was a Japanese Maple growing around the foundation of the front entry. During demolition they moved the tree to the backyard, its future home, but sadly it did not survive. Everything possible was done but it didn’t bounce back. Given it was one of the original trees on the property, the homeowner was determined to replace it with another Japanese Maple.

3 months before 

As soon as the new tree was found and purchased, Kimoff Nursery prepped it for successful replanting by digging a trench around the tree and filling it with nutrient-rich compost to promote new root growth. 

5 days before

Fallingwater’s Construction Enhancements Manager, Dave Johnson and his crew stepped in to prep the old tree for removal. “We severed all the roots, cut the branches back, removed the debris, and dug out the root ball so there was just a small stump for the crane guys to take away.”

the day before

Kimoff Nursery dug up the trench around the new tree, wrapped burlap around the root ball, and watered it well. Twine was used to reduce the tree’s canopy from 15’ to 10’ for safe road travel, and exact dimensions of the root ball were sent to Fallingwater, who needed to adjust the size of the hole to accommodate the new larger tree after the old one was craned out.

moving day

Vic City Crane was organized, professional and punctual from start to finish. Dispatcher Sadie Forbes handled all scheduling logistics with ease, including securing an oversize permit for highway transfer. One truck was dispatched to pick up the new tree from the nursery and deliver it to the site, where the crane was in position and ready. After craning the old tree stump out, Dave’s crew stepped in to dig the hole deeper for the new tree.

“Craning the new tree in was tight, really really tight,” says Dave. “We literally could not have done it if we had to go even one foot further. Vic City Crane was spot-on with their site assessment.”

Once the tree was placed in the hole, the crane crew moved on to their next job while Paul, Dave and crew put in a good two hours of hard work manually adjusting and rotating the tree so that it was centered, at the right depth and angle. 

“The tree was sitting a bit low and the root ball was heavy. It took four of us giving it all we had to rock it back and forth and push dirt underneath,” explains Dave. “To finish the replanting, we filled the hole with soil packing it down well to eliminate air pockets and promote root growth. We also removed the twine and carefully unfolded all branches that were tied up for transport.”

two weeks later

 “I’m happy to report the tree is doing brilliantly – healthy and happy in its new home,” says Dave, whose crew provides weekly landscape maintenance services to the Fairfield homeowner.

moral of the story

If you have the desire and determination to do something – along with a dash of ingenuity, perseverance, old-fashioned muscle and a great team – then you will always find a way to get the job done.

We’d like to thank all players who contributed to the success of this replanting: Biophilia, Vic City Crane, and Kimoff Nursey.