HELP!

Nobody wants the work - need to do it myself to get it DONE.

Simplified: I need to dig a ditch in a yard that is full of tree roots AND where the previous owner has put down gravel/stone to drive & park in this area of the back yard. So, it is compacted & nearly impossible to dig with a shovel. (Tried, gave up after an hour and a half with almost no progress) This is at my daughter's house.

Ideas: backhoe. Don't have one, would have to rent it along with a truck & trailer to haul it.

Trench digger. Don't have one. May be able to rent ramps & drive it up onto my pickup to transport. Asked the rental guy on the phone if it is self-propelled (I assume it would be?). His answer - to this & other questions- "Uh.... I think....."

Wondering if a trench digger will be able to handle the roots.

Any insight you have would be appreciated.

And if anyone wants to come visit southeast VA, I'll put you to work with a shovel! : )

Thanks!

Hand shovel and pick to daughter.

If she has a boyfriend/husband, hand them to him.

Last time I rented a trencher it came loaded on a trailer. Most of them are self propelled, you just drive it up the ramp on/off the trailer. It will easily cut through roots and will pull out the gravel. It takes some upper body strength to handle them, you have to pull it sideways to change direction of travel.

The rental company won't deliver?

I've never tried this, but what about renting a post hole auger for fences...drill the holes right next to each other, then use a space to get the stuff in between.

My (single) daughter & I had already tried many of your ideas - soaking it, pick, axe, shovels,... Way too much work for very little progress. This is compacted dirt & small stone. Plus LOTS of roots. The lot was overgrown before I bought it.

It's the guys with the big power tools I've been trying to hire. They apparently have too much work & I can't get anyone to dig. Landscaper would only consider it (in 3 more months) if the job was expanded to be a huge job with all sorts of extra work we neither need nor want.

I can get manual labor, so here's what we'll be doing: rent a trench digger & hire some muscle. The machine should loosen everything up so it can be shoveled & moved around in a wheelbarrow.

Certainly not ideal, but ya Gotta do what ya gotta do, to get the job done.

But, it is irritating when you are willing to pay their price to hire someone and can't.

Especially with arthritis & carpal tunnel issues - just can't physically do so much anymore. (Well, when I do, I suffer for it!)

DJ,

Small potatoes is right. You need to call 811 before you dig. You will need to flag the area where you are going to dig. It may be a few days before everything is marked and checked. If you accidentally hit utilities it could cost you a lot of money. If you hit fiber optic it will cost more then you have in a hundred years.