Yup I worry. I do the same as you with practice. I'm a newb, and I'm just happy when something doesn't die in the first place, so moving something makes me extra nervous.

Worry? Sometimes I even forget to plant them again. I have about 20 lily bulbs and five large acorus sitting on top of the dirt right now, and they have been sitting on top of the dirt for about two months. Daylilies, irises... too many plants, not enough time!
Renee

No, I move plants all the time. I just moved five blueberry bushes and two butterfly bushes, after work this evening. As long as it's not too muddy or too hot (and you water them immediately after you move them) they should be fine.

If it's really hot, try to give them a little shade, but we don't have that problem this time of year. LOL It was 17 F. the other night!

Sometimes I move plants because the deer have found them or because the grass took over (oops!) but mostly because they seem like they'd be happier in another location. I wouldn't worry about moving them, just make sure you have the new hole all ready, pop the plant out of the ground, move it to the new location and water well. Repeat with next plant :)

I'm moving plants this spring. Have divided and given away many.Just watered them well and have done fine.

I always worry, and I'm not a newby either. Here in Texas it's almost always too hot, too dry, too windy, or too something. Course, I had a Penelope Rose several years ago who wouldn't flourish no matter where I moved her to. She occupied all the choicest spots in the rose garden and the flower beds and still she languished, just barely hanging on to life. I finally got fed up and plunked her out in the middle of the yard. No ground prep, no compost in the hole, I just plunked her in and yelled, "Now, root hog or die!!" The following Spring she sprouted and bloomed like crazy. In subsequent years she has grown to about 15' in circumference and about 8' tall. She blooms Spring and fall out in the middle of the front acre all by herself. Go figure. Cheryl

I've been wondering how late into the season I can move them. Can anyone enlighten me as to a general rule?

We haven't had a frost yet here in Pittsburgh. (Just a little on some roofs one morning) Days are still getting up to high 50s/low 60s. Can I move until the ground freezes or should I stop this weekend?

So, Louisianagirl, I obviously worry! haha.

Here in NH I never worry about moving anything. We don't normally have really bad heat waves up here so I don't even stop moving plants in the summer. I just make sure that whatever has been moved gets watered well and I usually even make the planting hole pretty muddy so if I forget to water it again I probably won't have a problem. I just found a toad lily that I "planted" about a week ago. Trouble was, I never covered the plant over with dirt!! Threw it in the prepared hole and forgot about it! OOPS! Finished that one up and it should be fine for next year.

Scully, I'm still moving perennials around up here in Z5. I'll be stopping probably by end of Oct. Also still planting trees and shrubs now.

I know there are "best" times to move plants but I move them whenever it is the best time for me. That may coincide with the recommended time or not.

Depending on when the plant blooms and when it is moved it might not bloom the next season though I've never had a plant not survive a move as long as it is shaded from the hot summer sun and watered well and mulched. Adding a layer of mulch when moved in the late fall helps keep the ground from freezing until later and gives the roots more time to adjust.

LL you've had colder weather than we have here a lot further north! Are you in the mountains?

Seamommy, cute story, some plants just surprise us, don't they!

I'm either too old, too lazy, too tired, or too smart to move as many as I used to altho I moved quite a few this year as we made new beds and I moved the extras! I frequently used to move plants, sometimes the same plant several times in one year but I've never worried about them, just moved them to a better place and watered well. I don't move them in the heat of the day or when it's really hot and forecast for more heat. This is a dry climate so can't depend on rain and I dislike watering a lot and babying plants so am trying harder to get them in the right places. I also have very few losses as that's no fun at all for me.

Here in zone 3 I don't move anything past about mid to end of August when I stop fertilizing altho I probably could.

Luckygal- Technically, we're not in the mountains, but we are at about 2,400 feet elevation. Also, there's a creek behind the house, with a big hill behind it. I guess that's what does it, because my mom lives two miles away and she has frost about two weeks later and usually stays 5-10 degrees warmer at night.

When we're -27 F. in the winter, we're often one of the coldest places in the entire area. Kind of a perfect storm for cold :)

I loose most of the things I transplant. I just don't do well in that department yet. But I have gotten the hang of ditch lilies, mums, and irises. I'll move on to bigger and better things as time goes on.