the jacks will probably die back this year but they are fairly hardy and should come back next year no problem.

Something to keep in mind though is all this "disturbance" will make the area a prime site for garlic mustard (or other invasive) to fill in next year also. so keep an eye on garlic mustard and make sure you pull it so it doesnt take over and out compete the jacks.

Is there a way to eradicate garlic mustard? I pull it by hand ALL THE TIME, though I have honestly come to accept it as part of my "natural landscape!" Ugh :(

It is definitely NOT part of your natural landscape, and you will lose plants like the jacks if it comes to predominate. Pulling it by hand is a good way to control small stands. I have finally decided to just pull the second year plants (those that are flowering) each year. I figure I'll deplete the seed bank evenutally, and if I try to get everything each year I get overwhelmed. I can tell you that after several years of pulling, the mustard is thinning out - and we now have so many jacks its unbelievable. We also had Solomon's seal sprout where we had never seen it before in the yard. It is definitely worth the effort to remove the garlic mustard and see what comes back.

Your jacks will probably come back next year, but you could always consider caging some of the larger specimens so they don't get stomped on.

Jacks don't like compacted soil. They might come back but I would move/lift the more impressive ones just to be safe. My 2¢

Thanks for the advice, and the words of inspiration. That's what I need to hear to keep after those undesirables!

P.S. JoePye-
Did you read the thread about the "morality of moving native plants to protect against garlic mustard?"

i read that thread but i didnt post anything. garlic mustard is so prevalent in some areas that there is no way anyone could pull all of it...spraying round up on it could accidently spray on to something next to it. so its hard for me to have any input on that morality thread... i am overwhelmed by the amount garlic mustard all over the place - roadsides, woodlands, peoples back yards... its everywhere. i pull what i can to protect the areas that i feel i am a steward of, garbage bags and garbage bags full, but sometimes it seems feeble.

We have done extensive work in our woods to thin it out and open the canopy in the last three years of ownership of this property. In that time, we've had brush piles burning, we've had backhoes, mini-excavators and a brush hog through there. We had some local workers in for a couple weekend days trouncing around doing clean up. Oh, yes, we also had the stump grinding guy in.

All that being said, we have a plethora of Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Trillium, and ferns of all shapes and sizes. The back woods looks incredibly inviting. I've added bunches of daffodils as I dig them up from other parts of the property.

I think the little guys are very happy for the disturbance. It really set them into motion.

It's funny though. Now that I know they are out there, I try to walk cautiously through the woods. Of course, it's a challenge since there are so many. Some how they were thriving before all that.

Great story, Bomber!

Hi,

I discovered a jack in the pulpit on the north side of my house in a narrow 4ft wide space between the house and the garage. I have clay soil too. Isn't that a peculiar place to find one? I want to move it out, but where should I move it to? Is it the wrong time of year to move it?

I have deep shade under a maple, will it grow there?

Adam

Jacks will take a bit of tromping, and will probably come back. And if they are at all established, or otherwise fairly happy, they can "disappear" for a year, and then return later. But they are also very amenable to being moved. That's the safer course, if you can.

To Adam,
This is not at all a strange place to find Jacks in MA. Cool side of a protected area. Just it's cup of tea [grin]. You say you have clay soil..... Clay loam? or serious clay? Is it sort of difficult to dig, and turns in largish clumps? Or is it pretty much impossible to dig, and dries out by about midsummer to cracks and furrows?

If clay loam sounds more likely...... The Jack will be happy. Leave it if you can.

But if you *need* to move it.... It's not a terrible time to do so, if you are willing to water a few times over the next few weeks. But under a maple?? Probably a bad choice. Depends a little on the kind of maple, but most will dry out the surrounding soil, even beyond the tree's dripline. Jacks will be happier in partial shade/partial sun than they will be in more shade under a maple.

Take some more advice from people in your area before moving this Jack, if you want to keep and encourage it.

I'm not particularly fond of Jack in the Pulpit and didn't try to move it when I had some trees and shrubs installed. Didn't faze them. Actually, even the trillium came back, vs. those I carefully relocated trying to save them. Leave 'em be and since they liked the spot in the first place, they'll be back. They're also such prolific re-seeders, there are probably more in the works. BTW, if anyone really wants some, I'll be happy to provide! Just wish the trillium multiplied as fast, or even the sanguinaria.

Thanks Linda for that help. I will try to find a different location for the Jack, as I do have to move it. My clay soil is on the loamy side. It has never cracked and furrowed. It is not really difficult to dig except where there are roots. Once the roots have broken up the soil is pretty good. The ph is 6.4. I have another area that gets 4 hrs of sun in the morning that is outside the dripline of a maple. Is that too much sun?

Sorry to be so late. Thanks for all the extra information, Adam. Helps a lot.

No guarantees, but it sounds like the new area you chose should work just fine. Four hours of morning sun should be no problem in MA. In fact, this is just about perfect.

When you move it, try to get a fair amount of soil around it. Chunk it into the new place. Tamp it in. Let it be.

Water it in well when you first move it. Then let it be, unless you are in serious drought.

Sounds pretty easy Linda...I will let you know how it works out. Thanks for the help.

Adam,
:-)