Are you moving to a warmer zone?

And what size/age are the lavenders and lilacs?

For the perennials you could take some'insurance' by removing portions now and potting them up ready to move. If they're kept damp and warm then they should be growing away again ready to settle in the new bed.

If, when you get to your new home, you find you have serious garden work to do ahead of being able to plant you know that your treasures will be safely growing rather than sitting about in clumps.

Remember the labels - and think of the moving company having to pack your plants. Smaller containers are much easier to handle.

If the lavenders aren't too old, they might transplant, though you're probably better with cuttings.

The lavenders and lilacs are only two years old. I will still be in the same zone and am only moving 30mi away. Thank you so much for your help.

Two years ago, I faced the same problem, wanting to move some of my plants when my family moved to another location in the same city. I just did not have time to dig anything up, much less try to save plants that would eventually have to be relocated again in the new home. Looking back, there were only a couple of rose bushes, some irises, and some daylilies that I should have taken the time to move.

Most perennials can be transplanted. It is not worth your time or trouble to transplant annuals. If your situation allows you the time and freedom to move some plants, make the most of it. Just keep in mind that the larger and older a plant is, the less chance it has to survive. But it certainly can be done. I have even seen large, old trees relocated by professionals who have the proper equipment.

Water your plants well a couple of days before you dig them up; the plants need to take on additional moisture. Too dry soil will fall apart when you dig (unless it is hard clay), and too wet will be difficult to handle. You haven't indicated how quickly you will be able to replant, but if you have to wait more than a day, then you will need to put your plants in pots and keep them watered. The more you preserve root systems in original soil, the better chance of plant survival - this is especially true for the bushes you mentioned. So the bushes will be a lot better off potted.

If you have Rose of Sharon kind of hibiscus and they are not too large, you can move them, but it may not be worth the time and trouble. You can dig up many of the smaller hibiscus varieties and keep them in pots until you are ready to rebed them.

If you are placing plants in their new location within a day, you can wrap the roots in a wet towel, or dunk the roots in water. This applies to roses, butterfly bushes and lilacs. Small lilacs are done this way quite often in my area. However, you are still better off to keep the soil intact on the roots, so this method should not be your first choice.

You might hunt for offspring of most of your original plants instead of moving the parent plants since smaller plants have a better chance of survival.

Most mints, lavender, daisies, and sages will transplant very well. If yours are healthy in their present environment, try to give them the same kind of soil, moisture, drainage, and sun as they have now. Just give them more water than they are used to for a few weeks, except maybe the sages and lavender.

Best wishes

Cheryl, I did the same thing last summer, and would just add one suggestion. With some of the plants, particularly the Russian Sage, Roses and Butterfly Bushes, the roots may be longer (horizontally) than you would expect, so when you dig them up, try to get a good big ball of dirt around them. You can wrap the root ball up in several layers of burlap, if it's too big for a pot. Just keep it moist.

We also used cheap plastic bins from Home Depot as temporary homes for some of the larger plants - drilled holes in the bottom for drainage. Cheaper than buying big pots.

Because our landscaping project took a good deal longer than expected, our plants stayed in their pots and bundles for a couple of months before we could replant them (June to October), and my valiant husband spent a lot of time watering them, but everything came back like blazes in the spring. The new garden looks like it's been there forever :)

I'm going to attempt to transplant a white scabiosa plant to take to a plant swap..it is still in bloom(I think). Should I cut it back before I dig? Water it good before I dig? Should I water immediately after planting it in the potting mix to transport? Keep the transplanted plant in a shady area until date of plant swap? This has been a pretty plant but I wanted the Butterfly blue variety. Obtained through Wintersown swap.

I've moved plants from house-to-house several times. Those plastic shopping bags are great temporary containers, as long as they don't get filled with rain water before you replant (which I would do ASAP.) You can also pack a lot more plants in a smaller space with the bags. Pack the bagged root balls gently together in a box or bin so they don't have room to fall apart.

My priority would be to get the most expensive or hardest to find plants first. Then the other stuff if I still feel like it. Sept is a great time to move plants in zone 5.

pippi21 - a lot depends on when you first planted your Scabious. If it was earlier this year you might find it still has the 'shape' of its original container.

In which case simply dig it up with a big spading fork, wrap it in damp paper kitchen towels and secure them using whatever string or tape (or ancient panty hose) you have to hand and pop it into a plastic shopping baggie. Make sure the air can get around in the baggie (don't tie the handles together) until you're ready to transport it.

As you're going to a plant exchange, leave at least one flower and a bud on the plant. Most people like to know what it looks like and this will help it to be sold/swapped. If you're going to supply a label - a strip off an old yoghurt pottle and a permanent marker pen is usually all you need - do it at the same time and pop it in the baggie.

If the plant is firmly settled in the ground you will have to lift it with a rootball, if you can. (Sometimes a soil can be very light and sandy and falls away from the roots.)

If it's fairly large you may be able to improvise a container for it by using the bottom part of a potting mix baggie. Add more holes if you need to, and cut off the surplus plastic that's taller then the leaves. An inch taller than the dirt is fine.

If the rootball is intact and the roots are mostly protected - simply pop it into the potting mix baggie and fold the surplus plastic around so the air won't dry out the ball. Tie it or tape it. If you have to hold it for more than a few days - you can water the root ball.

If most of the dirt fell off - replace it with potting mix so the roots are covered - and put on your label the date you 'potted up'. Please. That way a buyer knows that the plant cannot simply be left for a while. It will need quick care once it gets to its new garden.

Park the plant in a sheltered place - dappled light and out of the wind - until you are ready to go to the event. Shade the box while you are travelling so the plant/s don't overheat. Lightly water two days before to get them ready to travel.

Hope that helps.