ABSTRACT
Salvaging native desert plants prior to developing a site has been a recognized practice in the Southwest since the late 1970s. Salvaging saguaros and other cacti has become fairly common in the last few decades. In many respects, moving a tree and accompanying root ball, weighing hundreds of pounds to many tons, is an engineering problem. The goal is to disturb the root ball and the many feeder roots as little as possible. In addition, damage to the structure of the tree is a concern. The process of removing a native tree from its original habitat may be divided into four phases: presalvaging preparation, sideboxing, bottoming, and maintenance. This chapter provides a brief description of each phase. The net result of effective salvaging practices and related regulatory ordinances is that the typical planned community can potentially increase the density of native plant species on site upon development.
