can you post a picture for us to see how wide it is, how many branches you have, what kind of a pot it's in? or at least find some picture that is similar by searching images? if you can move it by van/car (not commercially) I suggest the following: make sure it's totally dry. if you can lift it out of the pot and put it in plastic pot: will be easier to handle. get a conical wire cage (tomatoes), secure around the pot. that should secure the main trunk somewhat from wobbling. cylindrical wire cage might be good too. some breakage of branches will be inevitable: you might want to prune it. use old pantyhose or strips of stretchable fabric (elastic) to wrap around trunks/branches and also around the wire cage: so that the plant does not shift inside the cage, but there is some give when it shakes during transport. do not use regular ropes - they might snap the branches on a bump. break up a large cardboard box flat. crease it so it'll be easy to roll around the plant (or make it rectangular, so it would not roll if put on the side). it will be best if the pot is similar to the width of the plant: so you can put cardboard around the pot, extending to the height of the plant. do not close bottom or top. it'll be easier to lift it if you can grab it by the bottom of the pot - so tape cardboard to the middle of the pot with duct tape. if you can transport it vertically, wedged between other tall boxes - that's great. if not - you can gently put it on the side. and transport it sideways. make sure it does not roll. if it's on the side - some branches might break, if it is not secure in the wire cage. This post was edited by petrushka on Wed, Apr 17, 13 at 10:27

Just tuck them in some bright shade (under a chair, bench, deck rail, et cetera) for a few days, then move them into partial sun for a few more days. For best results, make it a two week transition. Josh

kat, You're doing fine indeed - their growth will be spectacular indeed before you have to pull them back inside for the winter. Your Gollum is sulking? Yes, a little shade then, but it is a full-sun plant, so the sooner it's there the better for it.

I can tell you that bananas do not grow below 52 degrees, so not much point moving them out earlier unless you are dying to make room in your house. Tropical hibiscus aren't crazy about temperature swings, you may get some yellow leaves when it gets chilly, but they'll definitely survive down to 40 degrees with no trouble. But they won't grow much. I usually go for the first week of May, onto my front porch which has a roof and faces east, so it's a little more protected from sun, wind and possible frost. Most of my plants are so big that I'm NOT moving them in again until fall! I suppose if you want a rule of thumb, I would guess maybe 50 degree low at night and no lower would be suitable, but I'm sure others have different opinions. If you're really ambitious, you could look up each kind of tropical on the web and see what recommended minimum temps are.