Answered properly,
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that cost us work.

Yes, and it is done routinely at scale. Survival is decided long before the crane arrives: by root pruning the tree in stages so it grows a compact feeding root system inside the ball you intend to lift, by cutting a root ball sized to the trunk calibre rather than to the machine on site, by protecting the ball from drying between lift and replant, and by irrigating and monitoring for at least one full seasonal cycle afterwards. Where that sequence is followed our record across more than 25,000 transplanted trees and palms is above 95 per cent survival.

The working rule used across the industry is roughly 10 to 12 times the trunk calibre in root ball diameter, measured at 150 mm above ground for smaller stock and at 1.4 m for large stock, with depth typically 60 to 75 per cent of the ball diameter. A 300 mm calibre tree therefore needs a ball around 3.0 to 3.6 m across and 1.8 to 2.4 m deep, which will weigh in the region of 8 to 18 tonnes depending on soil moisture. Palms are different: they are moved on a far smaller ball relative to their height because their root system regenerates from the base rather than from cut root ends.

For a healthy tree that can be prepared properly, allow three to six months. Root pruning is staged over two to three visits at four to eight week intervals so the tree can respond, then the lift and replant happens in a single day per tree, then establishment care runs for twelve to twenty-four months. Emergency transplantations compressed into a single week are possible and are sometimes the only option, but survival probability drops and that trade-off should be stated in writing before the work starts.

The window from November to March is strongly preferred. Transplant shock is a water-balance problem — the tree loses its root capacity on the day it is lifted while keeping its full canopy demand — so moving during Gulf summer, when evaporative demand is at its peak, stacks the odds against the tree. Where a programme forces a summer lift, survival can still be protected with heavier crown reduction, shade cloth, anti-transpirant treatment and a much more aggressive irrigation regime, but the cost of care rises.

Survival should never be a claim made on the day of replanting. We assess at 12 months and again at 24 months against defined criteria: live cambium, established new root growth outside the original ball, a leaf area index consistent with the species, and no progressive dieback. A tree that is alive but declining is recorded as a failure, not a success. Every transplantation is registered with species, calibre, source and receiving coordinates, dates and assessment results, and that register is what the survival percentage is drawn from.

Match the grade to the crop and the system. Low EC — below roughly 0.5 mS/cm at a 1:1.5 extract — is for propagation, seedlings, salt-sensitive crops and any closed or recirculating hydroponic system where salts accumulate. Mid EC, roughly 0.5 to 1.0, suits general nursery production, container growing and landscape soil amendment. High EC, above roughly 1.0, is economical for open-field soil conditioning, mulching and erosion control where leaching is free and the salt load is diluted by the soil volume. Using high EC material in a propagation tray is one of the most common and most expensive mistakes in the region.

Raw coir carries sodium and potassium from the husk and from any seawater retting, and it holds a high cation exchange capacity that will strip calcium and magnesium out of your feed solution for the first several weeks. Washing removes the free salts. Buffering with a calcium nitrate solution pre-loads the exchange sites so the medium stops stealing calcium from the crop. For propagation, hydroponics and any high-value crop the premium is small against the cost of a failed batch. For bulk soil conditioning on open ground it is usually not necessary.

A 5 kg block of standard compressed coco peat yields approximately 65 to 75 litres of hydrated medium, depending on compression ratio and grade. Blocks expand fastest in warm water and should be allowed to hydrate fully and then drained before use — planting into partially hydrated coir causes it to swell in place and lift plants out of the container.

Yes. Batch documentation covers electrical conductivity and pH by the stated extraction method, particle size distribution, moisture content and compression ratio. Always confirm which extraction method a supplier is quoting: a 1:1.5 volume extract and a 1:5 water extract produce very different numbers for the same material, and comparing them directly makes a compliant batch look like a failing one, or worse, the reverse.

It is a technique for establishing dense native forest quickly on small and degraded sites. The soil is prepared deeply and amended with organic matter, then native species from every forest layer — shrub, sub-tree, tree and canopy — are planted at high density, typically two to four plants per square metre, in a randomised mix. The site is mulched heavily, watered and weeded intensively for two to three years, and then left alone. Competition for light drives rapid vertical growth and canopy closure suppresses weeds, so the block becomes self-sustaining far sooner than conventional planting.

It can, provided two things are honest from the start. First, the species list must be genuinely regionally adapted — ghaf, sidr, samr, arak and their associates — rather than a tropical list transplanted from monsoon geography. Second, the water plan must be real: a dense block has a high establishment demand for the first two to three years and needs a secured supply, ideally treated sewage effluent or another non-potable source, with a defined date for weaning it off. Any proposal that skips either of those two points is selling a photograph, not a forest.

Canopy closure at two to three years and a genuinely forest-like structure at five to seven is a reasonable expectation on a well-prepared site with a reliable water supply. Growth rates quoted from tropical monsoon sites should be discounted for arid conditions. The honest metric to hold a contractor to is not height in year one, it is canopy closure and the date at which supplementary irrigation is switched off.

It can do real work. Under the Green Building Regulations and Specifications, vegetated roof area counts toward the requirement for indigenous and adaptive species, and covering a sufficient proportion of the roof with vegetation can be used in place of meeting the solar reflectance requirement for the roof surface. A green roof therefore does two jobs at once — it satisfies a planting requirement and it removes a specification constraint from the roofing build-up. The exact thresholds should always be confirmed against the current edition of the regulations for your specific plot and authority.

Design to saturated weight, never to dry weight. An extensive sedum-type roof at 80 to 120 mm of lightweight medium is typically 90 to 160 kg per square metre saturated. An intensive roof garden carrying shrubs and small trees, at 300 to 800 mm of medium, runs from roughly 350 to well over 1,000 kg per square metre saturated. Coir-based lightweight blends over a mineral drainage layer keep intensive build-ups at the lower end of that range without giving up water-holding capacity.

They vary by material and by whether the item is held in the Emirates or is imported to order. Coco peat in compressed blocks moves in container loads with short lead times; specialist grades, buffered material and custom blends need longer. Trees, palms and plants depend on availability, calibre and phytosanitary clearance. Landscape stone is generally imported to order against a specified finish and thickness. Send us the schedule and we will come back with quantity breaks, lead times and delivery terms rather than a single headline price.

Yes. We supply across the GCC and take enquiries from further afield. Terms, documentation and phytosanitary requirements differ by destination, so send the destination country with the enquiry and we will confirm what is required.

For materials: the item, grade or specification, quantity, delivery emirate or port, and the required date. For tree transplantation: species, trunk calibre, approximate height, a photograph, the access conditions at both the source and the receiving site, and your programme dates. For afforestation or roof gardens: the plot area, the water source, and the drawings you already have. The more of that arrives with the first message, the faster a real number comes back.

Within one working day. WhatsApp is the fastest route for a quick question or to send site photographs — the number is +971 58 883 0355. For anything with drawings or a schedule attached, email info@adigt.ae.