Too late to transplant ?

9 years ago

last modified: 9 years ago

I was reading an article that said you need to transplant gardenias 2 months prior to your first freeze. And to prune back 1/4 of the plant a week before transplanting ? Is that real or just a bad article? I am about 1-2 months away from our first freeze but temps just got into the lower to mid 80s here. so I just need some advise on if I should do it now or way till spring. By the way I also noticed the plants have a few blooms on them right now if that matters too.

Featured Answer

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

9 years ago

i am surprised they didnt tell you to put a couple pounds of fert in the hole ...

i like this general planting guide.. it addresses the variables you have to tune to your location ...

https://sites.google.com/site/tnarboretum/Home/planting-a-tree-or-shrub

right now you are discussing TIMING ...

also .. i like the general comment.. that every leaf is a food making machine.. so cutting off most of a root mass.. AND cutting off the leaves .. seems counter intuitive ... you need the leaves to regrow the roots ... [we arent discussing moving some 6 foot monster ... and you need to reduce size to be able to move it ...]

in my MI .. fwiw ... fall is the key ... and the key is NIGHT temps ... no matter what the day may throw at it ... if its cool or cold at night ... the transplanted plants has a recovery period to take on the next day ... its the same in spring ....

i deal with ground freeze ... so there is a long inactive period.. and i dont know anything about mid winter transplant ... which the warmer zone peeps seem to like .. again.. i presume its about a recovery period during some part of the 24 hour period ...

one last thought ... there is.. again.. in MI.. a big difference between a frost.. and a freeze ... and i often use that.. to intuit if the writer knows what they are talking about.. or to figure out.. if the writer is in a zone similar enough to mine that i should put a lot of stock into what they present ...

keep up Gods work ... we will get you there ...

ken

btw .. i cant do G in MI ... because it really freezes.. all winter long.. lol ... the point being .. except for zone in this case ... there really neednt be different rules.. for different plants .... i dont need to know .. for the most part.. about some specific G rules.. to tell you how to move one ... besides.. our friends will hone you in.. if general rules dont apply for some reason ....

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (6)

gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
9 years ago
Bad article :-)) If it were mine, I might wait until temps cool down a bit (early October?) or pretty much any time thereafter. I have no idea why frost would be an issue - if the shrub is fully hardy for your zone, frost has minimal impact. And as an evergreen shrub, it needs all that foliage to maintain a healthy root system. NO pruning!!
bsmith0023 (z8b coastal SC)
Original Author
9 years ago
Good to hear. I didn't see any other article saying that. Thanks!
Related Professionals
Kissimmee Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Killeen Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Colorado Springs Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Durango Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Las Vegas Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Baton Rouge Landscape Contractors · Bennington Landscape Contractors · Ocala Home Builders · Carbondale Home Builders · Anderson Home Builders · Springfield Home Builders · Saginaw Home Builders · Napa Home Builders · Seattle Home Builders · York Home Builders
Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I don't know where you found the article. but there are sites such as SFGATE that seem to pay writers to populate their data bases with articles such that whenever you do a Google search -- their articles come right -- as if they are the experts on the subjects.

Unfortunately many of these (probably freelance) writers really don't know anything about gardening and are getting their information from the web as well -- then rewriting it as their own.
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
9 years ago
bsmith, try to find fact sheets in the .edu websites. And never rely on the information from just one source.
Embothrium
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Gardenias aren't northern adapted and are likely therefore to keep growing or otherwise remain soft late into the season. So these would either be moved later in the fall than kinds that harden off in a timely manner or not moved until spring, where late autumn transplanting might be followed quickly be significant cold.

Otherwise fall in the physiological sense is when a particular tree, shrub or hardy perennial sets winter buds. It is at that time that the annual large burst of extra root growth occurs. Which to gain the full benefit of fall planting you want to have happen right after plants have been put in place.