Sorry to disagree....but if you dig peonys out of the ground and "bare root" them for a couple of weeks, when they are activly growing....you will be lucky to have them live, let alone bloom in 2 years. Iris are tough guys, they probably would be OK and one or 2 of the rhizomes might put up a bloom stalk. The rhizomes of the daylilys would probably shrivel up and die of left bare root for 2 or 3 weeks during the time when they are activly growing. If you really must dig during August ( and if you are going to wait 2 or 3 weeks to plant, you really should get them in the ground in time to re establish before winter sets in..should plant by Sept 15th or maybe just a little later at the outside) dig the plants with as much soil around their roots as you can manage and put then in either pots, or a sand box as you say but fill it with top soil or sphagnum moss which you have gotten really damp before you put them there....or shredded wood mulch or bark or wood chips....something that will hold moisture. This is the time of the year when plants are activly storing energy/carbohydrates in their roots to survive the winter and to put out growth next spring. Plants make energy through their leaves and sunlight ( photosynthesis....remember that from 9th grade?) and when you interrupt this process by cutting off the leaves or digging them up so they can't send water to the leaves and keep them green, you impair their abilty to survive the winter. If the reason you are digging them is to amend the soil in the bed....you would be a lot better off just amending with the plants in place....do a sheet compost....or lots of top dressing for several springs. The worms will take the nutrients where you need it. Linda C

Your plants will be fine soaking in the bucket for a few days. If you have to hold them longer I'd change out the water for fresh. I've had plants in water for as long as a month. They were a little smelly but they did fine. Each of those separate "stems" are indeed fans. Most folks do leave all three of them together. You can split them but it will take your plant longer to clump up. Enjoy your plants! Janet

Sorry, I did notice just now that my previous message did post. I am having email problems and so am not receiving my notice about answers to posts. Sorry.

Hi Roberta... Your question is good..however...us "pros" use plug trays in many ways. FIrst, it depends on the size of the plugs...for instance, I use 501's- that means there are 501 tiny cells per tray. Those would be for things with super tiny seed...begonias, petunias ect. It is unlikely you are using those though. There are many, many sizes. My guess is you have 72's or, perhaps 35's. Does not really matter..the answer to your question about soil is what you need. Use the BEST stuff you can find, a soiless mix (all peat based). The best thing you can do is pop into a greenhouse and ask if they will sell you a bag of their mix(it is a commercial blend sold to growers, many different brands). It should cost you about 15-20 dollars. It will be a big bag, not to worry, you will use it all. They may also only have it as a compressed bale...'bout 35 bucks. The soil you use in a plug tray is the most important thing. Yes, plug trays are easier to use and save a lot of space. The top-notch soil mix will pay off in everything you plant. It is very worth your time to find this stuff. BTW..yes, there are specific mixes that can be bought for plug production but you do not need this. You need the all purpose greenhouse mix. Your other question...I used to live in Rockford and was a grower there too. I got smart and moved to the land of sun (TEXAS!) but I remember well the schedual for perennials. I assume you plan to sell them as green plants. If you had a greenhouse it would not be to early to plant but since you are doing this in your house, the light levels will be way to low and your seedlings will probably stretch and be a sickly mess in very short order. If it were me, I would wait until March or so to get started. This way you can at least be moving your trays out into better light on warm days. A better way is to start your seedlings in the mid-summer and winter them over (once dormant, a garage will do pretty well to protect them). As spring comes around, you simply bump them up to a bigger container and you will have blooming plants to sell (at much higer prices). Growing stuff in Illinois is frustrating this time of year- even when you have a greenhouse. The quality of light is just so poor. I hope this helps a little....your questions are actually rather big and I know I only have touched on the answers. Hang in there- Tim