Fall transplanting

Posted on September 24, 2017September 24, 2017 by Christopher Lindsey

“Now hold on a minute,” you may be saying to yourself. “You talked about fall planting last week. What’s so special about transplanting that it gets its own post?”

The answer is a very subtle, but extremely important one: planning.

It seems that every fall I have a list of plants that need to be moved for some reason. They’ve outgrown their space, they’re languishing and underperforming, the dog likes to lay on it, the color clashes with other plants, you have a better (new) plant for that location, etc. That’s one of the great things about a garden — you can change it at any time, for any reason. Once you plant something you’re not stuck with your decision.

It’s that need to notice earlier in the growing season (and remember later) that makes planning such a critical part of the process.

I’ve found that marking plants that need to be moved with a landscape flag like the one to the right works really well for me. I use four colors:

Pink: This plant needs to be transplanted
Blue: This plant needs special attention, be it extra water or just monitoring
Orange: This plant was just planted and needs to be added to my plant database and have a label made
Lime: This plant has not been planted yet — I stick the flag in the pot and put the pot out in the garden

I’ll explain the flags more in another post, but this should be enough for you to get the idea. If I see a plant that needs to be moved, any time in the season, I literally flag it. Then, when the temperatures are right, I look for the flags in the garden. Sometimes the plant gets moved early, and sometimes it waits until fall.

Generally speaking, perennials require less work to transplant than woody plants. When I know I’ll need to move a small tree or shrub, I always take a spade and root prune around the base of the plant. Stick your shovel in where you think you’ll be digging, push it in all the way, and then remove it. Keep doing this until you’ve gone around the plant completely. Since the plant is staying in the ground it can recover much more easily than if I dug it up right away, and this gives the plant a chance to grow a network of new roots that will be able to support it come fall.

Perennials are much easier to transplant because their root systems are more contained, so they rarely need to be root-pruned except for suckering plants that form colonies.

From here on out you can follow the same directions as those for planting new plants. Enjoy!

My fall to-do list in the garden

Posted on September 18, 2017September 24, 2017 by Christopher Lindsey

Nothing beats fall camping.

Fall. I think it’s my favorite season — I love the crisp, chill air at night, the fall harvest, and I especially love the vibrant patchwork of leaves that change from green to yellow to orange to red. There’s nothing better than an October camping trip, sitting around a crackling fire under the stars and rustling leaves with a hint of frost nipping at your nose.

But as a gardener, fall terrifies me. It seems to sneak up so quickly, and with it comes a list of failed summer tasks. Suddenly I’m in a race against the clock, triaging projects or admitting defeat and moving them to next year’s list. But fall also comes with its own new set of projects, and a lot of those can’t be ignored. I’ve found the best thing to do is make a checklist/timeline and work my way through. Here’s my list for USDA hardiness zone 5b:

September

Technically, fall doesn’t really start until September 22nd (the equinox), but things start changing quickly before that. After June 22nd the days get shorter, and the amount of daylight that’s being lost becomes accelerates as the date gets closer to September 22nd. This is why I start my planning on September 1st.

Order/buy bulbs: If you have want to plant fall bulbs, get them ASAP. Stores will run out and you want time to plan your plantings.
Take cuttings: Herbs like basil and mint respond well as cuttings. Cut a small piece off, remove the lower leaves, and plant it in water. Once the roots are 2″ long you can pot it up as a houseplant and use fresh herbs throughout the winter.
Plant cool-weather vegetables in mid-September, like arugula, radishes, and bok choy.
Know the frost dates for your area. You can check this on our earlier blog post.
Fix any broken irrigation lines so they can be flushed later.
Take photographs of all container plantings. You can look at them over the winter and figure out which ones worked and which ones didn’t (and buy the ones that worked again next year).
Plant any perennials or shrubs that haven’t made it into the ground yet this season.
Transplant any perennials or shrubs that need to be moved.
Re-seed any areas of your lawn that need it.

October (pre-frost)

Harvest any vegetables. If you have green tomatoes, place them in a paper bag with an apple to ripen them. Can, freeze, or dehydrate them.
Harvest any other herbs. You can freeze them or dehydrate them.
Bring in any container temperennials that you want to overwinter (Mandevilla, Begonia).
Remove your tomato, pepper, and tomatillo plants right before frost. They will get slimy and difficult to remove otherwise.
Harvest your cool weather vegetables that were planted in September.
Plant your spring bulbs.

October (post-frost)

Frost-kissed oak leaves shine in the morning.

Collect any seeds from garden plants or herbs.
Rake your leaves and compost them.
Harvest any kale, cabbage, or swiss chard (the flavor is better after frost).
Bring in any container plants that need to be overwintered (Ficus ‘Chicago Hardy’, grapes, sage, bay laurel) and store in an unheated garage.
Collect bulbs from elephant ears, dahlias, cannas, and caladiums and overwinter in a cool, dry, place (but not too cool!)
Pick up any fallen fruit around fruit trees to prevent pests from overwintering and attacking next year’s crop.
Mow the lawn.
Flush any irrigation lines that aren’t below the frost line.
Water any plants that need it before the ground freezes.

November

Clean your vegetable gardens. Remove any old plants and foliage that has fallen on the soil. Weed and mulch with straw or leaves.
Empty soil from pots can’t handle freezing (ceramic, terra cotta, many plastic pots, etc) and bring pots inside.
Bring in garden hoses.
Turn off outdoor faucets.

Remember, this is just my list. Yours might be different, and if you’re in a different hardiness zone you might have to shift the timeline a little.

Over the next few weeks we’ll cover some of these items in more detail, and we’ll update the items above with links to the corresponding posts.

2013 fall plant orders, part 2

Posted on November 6, 2013January 2, 2023 by Christopher Lindsey

Hosta ‘Paradise Joyce’ in the garden. Who can deny the beauty of that foliage? Stuff like this made me order more.

When I first started gardening I didn’t care for Hosta much. I wanted the flashy perennials that wowed you with colorful flowers, fruit, and foliage. What I didn’t realize then is that those characteristics are often a flash in the pan; you’re later left with nothing but drab brown seed pods, wilting foliage, or worse — a carpet of solid green.

That doesn’t mean that Hosta are the ultimate answer. But what they can do is provide a stable architectural foundation in your garden from spring to fall that you can utilize when designing the rest of your beds. And they’re not ugly! Some are fragrant, many are variegated in hues of white, cream, gold, steely blue, even picking up hints of orange and red now. Their sizes vary, they’re tough and don’t need a ton of water or maintenance, and they all have different architectural qualities. So when I was looking at all of the holes in my garden this summer I realized that I really needed more Hosta.

After looking around online I placed an order this fall from New Hampshire Hostas¹. They had great prices and great stock, so I figured “Why not?” Here’s what I ordered:

1 Athyrium filix-femina ‘Victoriae’
3 Hosta ‘Blue Mouse Ears’
1 Hosta ‘Coconut Custard’
1 Hosta ‘Doubled Up’
1 Hosta ‘Dream Queen’
1 Hosta ‘Dress Blues’
2 Hosta ‘Extasy’
1 Hosta ‘Fantabulous’
2 Hosta ‘Flemish Sky’
1 Hosta ‘Frozen Margarita’
1 Hosta ‘Gentle Giant’
1 Hosta ‘Goodness Gracious’
1 Hosta ‘Great Expectations’
1 Hosta ‘Ice Prancer’
2 Hosta ‘Kiwi Full Monty’
2 Hosta ‘Orange Marmalade’
1 Hosta ‘Prairie Sky’
2 Hosta ‘Rainforest Sunrise’
1 Hosta ‘Shimmy Shake’
1 Hosta ‘Striptease’
2 Hosta ‘Tiny Bubbles’

My big order of Hosta had arrived!

All of the Hosta laid out on the coffee table. Lula looks on approvingly.

The plants all arrived in great shape, and although some of the plants had lost their leaves because it was so late in the season I could tell that the crowns and roots were strong.

Of course, I’m faced with the same problem as last time. Where do I put them all? I have ideas, but time is running out as Old Man Winter approaches. I may plant them in a holding bed with a lot of mulch to prevent heaving, then get out there in the spring and move them to permanent homes.

It will be tough to wait. Some of these Hosta are really exciting to me — ‘Gentle Giant’ can reach 6′ wide and 4′ tall; how’s that for a bold statement in the garden? Maybe I’ll have to order more in the spring…

_____________________________________ [raw]
[raw]¹ I have no business relationship with New Hampshire Hostas at the time of this writing.

2013 fall plant orders, part 1

Posted on October 31, 2013December 5, 2014 by Christopher Lindsey

Half of the plants from the order

I used to order plants via mail fairly frequently, but because of time and monetary constraints I slacked off for a while.

Until this fall. It all started when I was looking for a replacement for my beloved Dirca palustris which had been broken by some careless tree trimmers who worked for the power company. They didn’t actually kill it, but they broke it in half and opened up a perfect space underneath for my dog, Romeo. On hot summer days Romeo would dig deep and curl into the exposed roots to keep himself cool. However, I love Romeo and hate the tree trimmers, so I’m giving the tree trimmers full blame.

The original plant came from Woodlanders nursery in 2003, but their recent catalogs didn’t list leatherwood any more. Until this fall, that is. I was so excited to finally have a source again, but shipping was going to be expensive. “I’d better order more plants since I have to pay pretty much the same shipping rate anyhow,” I rationalized.

I think every gardener who orders via mail has gone through this process to satisfy their plant lust. There should be a support group.

Somehow I justified my way to twelve different items. I upped the quantity to five for two of the plants, giving me twenty plants total:

Dirca palustris (to replace the murdered one)
Stewartia koreana (I’ve always wanted one)
Athyrium felix-femina var. felix-femina ‘Minutissimum’ (I have some of these ferns from Woodlanders and they’re great. They stay 6″ high and are awesome with miniature hosta)
Clethra fargesii (why not? It sounds interesting)
Clethra barbinervis (after hearing Dan Hinkley praise this plant so extensively, I had to try it in my own garden)
Salvia koyamae (I grew this with great success for several years, until the one year that Aegopodium made its way to that bed and strangled the poor Salvia in the night)
Zenobia pulverulenta ‘Woodlanders Blue’ (I tried this in 2003, but killed it pretty quickly. I wanted to have another shot)
Franklinia alatamaha (I have always wanted to try this plant because of its rich and fascinating history)
Hosta yingeri (Mine from 2003 is flourishing, but lonely; I ordered five friends)
Oxydendrum arboreum (Another interesting plant that I really should be growing. The only one in town was cut down)
Viburnum acerifolium (Another 2003 plant that was getting lonely; it now has a friend to shout across the garden to)
Viburnum sieboldii ‘Seneca’ (I don’t know why. I got caught up in ordering, I think)

The other half of the order, mostly perennials.

I have places in mind for many of these, but not all. My eyes were bigger than my stomach. I mean yard.

So what am I going to do with them? Since the plants came from South Carolina (which is considerably warmer than East Central Illinois), I hardened the plants in the garage at night and left them outside during the day. Because it’s so late in the season I may not get a well-established root system before winter, so I’ll add a heavy layer of mulch after planting these bareroot beauties to help protect against frost heaving.

Once I figure out where they go, that is.

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