Perennials are plants that come back year after year. They are great to have in your garden because they grow and multiply giving you more and more.  When I buy a perennial I buy only one because if I plant it and wait a season it will generally give me plenty to spread around my garden and share with my friends.

The most important thing about moving plants is timing

• In early spring just as things are coming up you can dig them and cut them up and they will be fine.
• If you try to move something in the summer when it is big and in bloom you will kill it.

These videos will show you how easy it is to divide perennials.

 

Why does a plant die when moved?

It is important to understand that a plant breaths and expires moisture through its leaves.  When it is moved its roots are disturbed.  If it can’t absorb enough moisture through the roots to offset the loss through the leaves it wilts and dies.  If you can stop this moisture loss until the root is able to support the plant then it will survive.

• If at all possible don’t move a plant in the summer when it has a lot of growth on it.
• If you have to you must protect it from moisture loss.
• You can do this by cutting off all flowers and buds and cutting back the foliage.

Place something over the plant like a bucket to keep the moisture inside until the roots are reestablished.

This plant has too much growth to move as it is.

Cut back foliage along with flowers or buds.

•  After you cut back the foliage you can dig up the plant.  If you aren’t planting it immediately put it in a plastic bag to keep it moist.  Get it replanted as quickly as you can.
• Dig a hole in the new location.  You want the plant to be placed at the same depth it was before you dug it out.
• Place the plant in the hole and fill it with water so that the soil right around the roots is good and wet.
• Refill the hole making sure that you pack the dirt tightly around the roots.

 

• Cover the plant with a bucket to create a little greenhouse.
• Remove the bucket in a day or two but keep an eye on the plant.
•  If it begins to wilt cover it up again.
• You can remove the bucket permanently when the plant no longer wilts.  This might be a day, or it could take a week or more.  Usually, if the foliage is cut back nicely and the plant isn’t too big it will be a day or two.

If you are moving something bigger like a tree or a shrub you should wait until it is dormant.  I usually do it in the early spring before it has put on leaves.  If you can do any pruning on the plant it will probably help it move easier by diminishing moisture loss.

I have had great success moving plants this way so that I rarely lose one.  I hope this helps.  Good Luck and Happy Gardening!!!