When we bought our house, the previous owner had a clause to take some special plants, specifically iris. Definitely do it if you want to!

WG

There have been a few recent threads about this exact subject on the perennials forum - take a look there, it will make you feel better. The buyers may not want your garden, so taking plants may be a really good plan.

You have my sympathy, anyway, it will be sad to leave your garden behind. I left my first real garden about 18 years ago, in the middle of winter. Actually, I love driving by to see how all the plantings I did along the road are faring. No gardeners have lived there since I left, but no one has touched my mixed shrub/tree borders in front of the house, and they look terrific!

If your buyer wants the garden, leave it behind and start fresh. It's not *really* the plants themselves that make us love our gardens, it's the work and the care we put into them, paying us back. You can do that again with new plants, and have another lovely garden, if that's what you need to do.

Emily,
Being a habitual transplanter there have only been two shrubs that surprised me how much they did not like to be moved one was Oak Leaf Hydrangea and the other Harry Lauders Walking Stick. You might want to do a little home work before attempting to move it. I tried this winter to cut through one side/half of the roots and thought I would move it in the winter of 2008. I lost half of the shrub and have now decided not to continue to move it. Keep in mind this was the experience of a hack but again you may want to do a little research before trying to move it. Congratulations on the move I am guessing whether you bring plants with you or not it won't take you long before you have run out of room for all the plants you lust after. kt

kt,
Thanks for the warning on Harry. I'll do some research.
dtd,
Thanks for your sympathies! And, you are right, the labor is what makes them "ours." I do have some special favorites, though, that have to come with me. And, I don't know if any of you have heard of Yvonne's Salvia, but, I have promised seeds to hundreds of people from my plants. Do you think I can put a clause in that allows me to come back and harvest seeds?? ;)

Hi Em,

Yes, by all means, make sure you tell them ahead of time that you will be taking things with you. Tell your RA when you list your home. Make sure that any offer you accept has that clearly stated.

Good luck with your bid.

sooey

we have that written into our current property for sale - when I brought it up with my realtor I said "this is going to sound crazy, but..." and she said "you want to take some plants with you, right? Once I read 'established perrenial gardens' I know that means they want to keep some of the plants!"

I feel your pain, mskee... I've moved many times, knowing that some of my beloved, hard-won stands of plants are probably going to die at the hands of the next owners. Typically, I've moved long distances, so the idea of moving large shrubs or trees wasn't an option... but taking cuttings was (and you can ignore conventional wisdom on the right time to take cuttings when the need arises!). I've found that there's a certain satisfaction in just simply having the DNA from a previous residence in my new garden. It may not be the original plant that I loved so much, but it still maintains the connection to the original plant, and its origins.

For example, my previous house was in Richmond, VA, and I couldn't bear to leave behind a lovely veronicastrum virginicum that I had bought for a couple of bucks at the Lewis Ginter botanical garden plant sale (PS... I saw runktrun's thread about her visit to Longwood - garden fans should also put Ginter on their list if they're ever going as far south as Richmond on I-95... it's well worth a visit!). As I was preparing to leave, I took a few cuttings of the plant, in a sort of hail-Mary move, and now, two years later, I'm anticipating posting a couple of photos on the "standout plant" thread when the cutting that took (now about 5" tall) comes into bloom... any day now). I can point to other plants that came here during the same move two years ago. I took small samples that the new owners wouldn't miss, and they've mostly done wonderfully (some didn't, but c'est la vie.., VA and CT are very different). It's wonderful to look at those plants and to know that they're connected to my old residence, and to a previous part of my life.

One other comment, though... If you know that you have dedicated plantophiles moving into your house, and you're not moving too far, then it shouldn't be a hard thing to convince them that - as we all know - plants need to be divided now and again, and almost nobody has so much room that they can accommodate every division that results from the process. If you are lucky enough to have people buy your house who know gardening, then you have a valuable ally. Sounds like might have a great blank slate.... just don't forget that a small unobtrusive little sample from a stand of beloved plants can be turned into a large reproduction of the original in just a few years, and the satisfaction is priceless!

Enjoy your new garden and your new home! You are going to keep us informed, I hope!!! Best of luck with your move.