Abstract: In response to the current lack of suitable excavation machinery for working in permafrost environments in the market, a spiral excavator suitable for cold regions in the north was taken as the research object. By measuring the frozen soil parameters in Harbin and comparing them with hard soil, the basis for determining the soil parameters of the working object is obtained. Based on the required pit size for transplanting birch seedlings, parameter design was carried out for the working components of the excavator. According to the kinematics analysis, the critical speed of lifting soil was determined, and the power required by the device was obtained by analyzing the working parameters of the excavator. For the convenience of conducting experimental verification, the similarity theory was used to scale the experimental device and operation pit. The length of the drill bit used in the experiment was 400 mm, the length of the blade was 200 mm, the radius of the drill tip was 100 mm, the speed was greater than 155 r/min, and the rated power of the power source was 4 kW. The experimental results indicate that when the blade combination method was flat serrated, the shortest excavation time can be obtained. This study provides a reference for the design of a spiral excavator for transplanting tree seedlings under frozen soil conditions in the autumn and winter seasons of northern cold regions.