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Uh Oh! Did I reset the clock? Ken_A

11 years ago

So, I moved my HUGE Blue Angel this spring. I just got done reading where Ken said that if you move the giants, you reset the clock!!!

Ken - What exactly does that mean? what will she look like next year?

Be gentle, I WILL cry where my hosta are concerned!!!

Comments (7)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
11 years ago
growing giants is all about growing a giant root mass.. to eventually support the giant above ...

IF!!! .. on digging.. you chop off some of the roots.. you WILL set it back ..

if you do NOT.. you probably wont ...

listen.. you do what you gotta do .. when you need to do it ...

i THINK my point.. in one of the other posts.. was to .. plan the giants to NOT NEED TO BE MOVED ... moving in and out.. smaller ones ..

we have all messed up on planning.. so what.. see above.. you do what you gotta do ..

i did NOT mean to say you reset the clock back to day one.. you might just set yourself back a season or two.. depending on how poorly you dug the root mass ...

and all that said.. if you are digging it out from under a maple.. you probably will gain a year or two.. rather than lose such

quit worrying.. throw them on the driveway.. yadda yadda.. lol ...

ken
in ny zone5
11 years ago
I agree with Ken, you do it when you have to do it, when you remember it, when you feel like it, when it is not too hot!
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Thank you everyone !!! I'm so glad you enjoyed my little adventure. It is so much fun for me to do these documentation type posts. I hope it helps some of the lurkers figure out which methods they want to utilize in their own gardens. Don - Beefy is an understatement, her roots were ridiculous. With the larger chunk I had to slide it across the yard to the hole. I couldn't lift it even after washing all the soil off. Hoffa is on the other side of the yard, haven't started over there yet. :p Hostanista - The two Hellebore in the front of the picture are, Kingston Cardinal and Gold Finch. They are clones that were purchased from Heronswood Clonal Introduction back in 2007. I'm not the expert on Hellebore, but I am pretty sure the flower colors do not come true from seed, so Dan Hinkley was running a cloning program to preserve some of the better hybrids. I'm not sure if that is still the case since Heronswood has been bought out by Burpee. Babka - I write this response the morning after, and boy am I SORE. My arms and hands the most, but my lower back as well. One can only eat so much ibuprofen. Really though, it was the first major project after many months of sitting inside. The pain is a good pain :p Steve - I actually only thought of the sifting since I saw the old screen for the basement window lying underneath one of the azaleas. Last year we had a tank less hot water heater installed and they had to cut holes in the window for the exhaust, thus rendering the grated screen useless. So I figured, might as well get some use out of it. It is old and really weather worn. Not sure that it is a long term solution, but I want to build a sifter anyway. Mocc - Face lift !!! that would have been such a better title than mine. Her other two sisters are still with her in the front yard, but in separate beds. There will be 4 beds total when all is said and done, and I will feature the other two in one of the remaining beds. This clump got the best spot on top of that little hill. But the rule of three will apply to the yard as a whole with these ladies. They are just too big to plant next to each other for my tastes. Asparagus ferns are sold as annuals around here. My mother used to have one that she brought in every year for the winter for years when I was growing up, but they are way too messy and big for me to do that now. The orchids would get jealous. :p Ken - I did in fact fall forward. Thank God no one was around to see me because they probably would have laughed. That shovel was very short and I am 6 foot so I was almost hunched to use it at some points. When I began lifting the clumps out of the hole is when it went CRACK and all my inertia pushed me forward into the yard. I laid there for a bit and laughed at myself. Next time I am getting a 5 foot shovel with a metal handle. :) Jonny B - Thank you ! The fairy ring was not nearly as bad as I had thought. The one piece did crack and fall off when I was lifting them, but I had to shovel split the other smaller piece from the main to get them into workable portions. I have some ferns that are also showing fairy ring, but that seems to be a common characteristic with older established plants. Not sure I'm going to fuss with them though. Phil - Breaking shovels it is not fun, but it did make for a good laugh. :) Thanks again everyone for reading. There will be plenty more of these posts this year as I continue to tame the jungle. Ludi
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paul_in_mn
11 years ago
I have moved some and noticed no disruption, while others have been smaller leaved and tighter form the following year.....and I always take as big a root mass as I can handle. Water it well for the next couple of weeks, then treat as normal.

Paul
Ludicious Acres
11 years ago
This is a concern of mine as well Ã¯Â¿Â½ I plan to dig up my three giant Elegans next spring Ã¯Â¿Â½ amend the soil underneath and replant right where they were.

Sounds to me if I get enough of the root ball I can have them the same size they are now (or close enough) when I put them back into the amended soil.

I agree with Ken, plan to where you don't have to move them. But in my case the soil hasn't been touched in over 8 years. I think regardless if I reset the clock I will have stronger happier hostas in the long run.

Gardening will surely teach you patience (at least in my experience).

Thanks all !

Ludi
Wendys_garden
11 years ago
I think "set it back" is a more accurate description than "reset".
I have 2 Sagaes that were bought at the same time, same size. Planted next to each other in a holding bed. Then I decided to overhaul all my gardens, so the holding bed became a multi-year bed. They were huge by the time I was ready to move them. I decided to keep one in it's current location & move the other. I had a massive root ball so I know I got alot of the roots, but most likely severed a few.

Now, the plant didn't shrink at all, it looked great that year even though I moved it after it was leafed out (I used Ken's taping method). But 3 years later, you can tell one is smaller than the other. It looks like it is a year behind the other one. After 3 years it has not caught up, but is growing steadily. I think it will probably always look a year behind the other one. I don't care, it's growing like crazy and is huge! If I didn't have the other one to compare to, I would never know it was set back a little.

Wendy
Steve Massachusetts
11 years ago
Ludi,

There's no need to do that enormous amount of work of digging up those big guys just to amend the soil. Just top dress the soil in the entire area with compost or a composted mulch (see below) and let the worms do the work for you. Unless you are dealing with a significant amount of soil compaction this will do just fine. Even if you do have a lot of soil compaction loosening it with a fork (don't turn the soil, just stick the fork in and lean to one side) and then mulching will do the trick. Oh and don't forget the most important thing water, water, and then more water.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Enriching mulch
Cricket_Love
Original Author
11 years ago
I did move her away from the nasty maple tree! I should say "we" dug her. I just couldn't bring myself to do it, so I turned my head while my husband got her. He did very well with her roots. She had a huge root ball, and he did sever a few, but not many. I told him to treat her like a new born! I had him too nervous to be hasty! Haha! I've been keeping her well watered, and did move her when it was still fairly cool out. She is looking pretty good! I feel much better now! :) Unless we get the small acreage that we are looking at, she is in her final home! If we do move, I will be waiting until mid to late September (Ia zone 4b/5a) to move her. Thanks for putting my mind at ease! Whew!

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