Installation service
We'll plant them for you.
Most tree plantings fail for reasons that have nothing to do with the tree: grass competition, deer browse, cattle, and no protection. We show up with the trees, the posts, the tubes and the equipment, and we do it right.
What's included
A finished planting, not a pile of pots
Delivery
Your trees arrive healthy and hydrated the day they go in the ground. No shipping stress, no week in a box.
Planting
Ideal hole size, correct depth, roots spread, soil firmed and watered in. Deep-pot stock means a real taproot goes in with the tree.
Protection
Tree tube and stake standard. T-post and welded wire cage where cattle have access. This is the step people skip and regret.
Weed control at the base
Grass is the number one killer of young trees. We clear and treat a weed-free circle around every trunk.
Mapping
You get a simple map with GPS points so you can find, mow around and check every tree next year.
Care sheet
Written follow-up instructions: watering in year one and two, when to remove tubes, what to watch for.
Install options
Three core installs, or a plan built around your ground
Most plantings fit one of three tiers. If yours does not, we build a custom plan — and either way we will walk you through what each option actually buys you: how resilient the planting will be and what the tree looks like at maturity.
Our install rates are a fraction of what the big nurseries charge. We are a small Iowa operation with low overhead, and the labor price reflects that.
Prices below are the service fee per tree. Mulch is included in every install. Other parts — tubes, posts, wire, fencing — are billed separately at cost, and the tree itself is priced on top of that.
Tier 1
Planting + mulch ring
We deliver, plant properly and finish with a mulch ring to kill the grass competition that quietly strangles most new trees. Mulch is included in the price.
Right for: low-pressure ground where deer and livestock are not a real threat, or where you are protecting the trees yourself.
Tier 2 · most common
Tree tube + T-post
Everything in Tier 1, plus a tree tube held in place on a steel T-post with wire. Stops deer browse and antler rub, keeps raccoons out, creates a greenhouse effect that speeds early growth, and makes spraying around the trunk safe.
Add a second T-post for extra rigidity where small livestock have access in forested ground.
Tier 3
Fenced or caged ring
A full protective ring for pasture with real livestock pressure. Cows rub, lean, push and chew, and they will flatten a standard tube. This is the only setup that reliably survives them.
Most expensive option, and we only recommend it with larger stock — two or three year old trees rather than seedlings.
Every property is different. Any customer can have a custom plan. Tell us the site location, the animals, and what you want to get out of this plan, and we will tell you honestly which tier is worth the money and which is overkill.
Silvopasture note. Trees in pasture is a legitimate and productive system, but they have to get above reach before you turn livestock back in. Plan on protecting them for years, not months, and plan on checking the cages after every winter.
Service area
Where we work
Home range is central and western Iowa, roughly between Des Moines and Omaha. We will travel anywhere in Iowa when the job size justifies it and the client covers travel.
Job size. Installations have a minimum. Smaller orders are always welcome for farm pickup or a Des Moines metro meetup. Tell us your county and tree count in the form below and we will tell you whether an install makes sense for you or whether pickup is the better deal.
Working with what you have
Already have trees, a food plot, or ground you are clearing?
Existing trees
Walk the property with us and we will identify what is already growing and flag the native trees worth keeping. For a silvopasture plan we mark which trees stay and which come out.
Land clearing
If you are clearing ground anyway, that is the ideal moment to plan what replaces it. We are a good resource for repopulating a cleared area with something productive.
Existing food plots
Trees supplement a food plot rather than replace it. We can add a mast layer to a plan you already run so the food does not stop when the plot gets browsed down.
No install needed
Buying seedlings on their own
$100 minimum order
Every seedling we grow is available without an install. The only requirement is a $100 combined minimum — and it really is combined. One of each species is fine as long as the total clears $100.
The minimum counts tree cost only. Install fees, tubes, posts and other parts do not count toward it.
Pickup or meetup
Collect them at the farm near Casey, Iowa, or meet us on the west side of Des Moines. We schedule both around your spring planting window.
We do not ship trees.
Older, larger trees for custom plans. Seedlings in 4" x 12" pots are our standard because they are the best value by a wide margin. But we also grow stock on into 1 and 2 gallon pots, and two, three, four and five year old trees are available as part of a custom plan.
They cost more, and they are worth it if you want nuts or fruit within a year or two instead of waiting on a seedling. A three year old chestnut or hazelnut can bear its first season when conditions are right. Stock varies constantly, so call or email to ask what is available before you plan around it.
Get a number
Request an installation quote
The more you tell us about the ground, the more useful the quote. There is no charge and no obligation for an estimate.