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captainobvious
- Newly Registered
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Sat Jul 30, 2011 3:47 pm
- Location: Huntington WV
Transplanting Questions, Need Advice Please
Hi, I am new to gardening, and am very upset. I put out a garden of my own for the first time this year, only to find out a few days later that we have to move. I have invested well over 100$ in my garden, and I was wondering if *by chance* I could dig up any of my plants & transplant them at my new house? I have about 1/2 dozen tomato plants, 1/2 dozen green pepper plants, 1/2 dozen cucumber plants & 1/2 dozen strawberry plants. I bought these as small plants from a local nursery, and I already have some cucumbers & strawberries, but no tomato or green peppers yet since we had to wait on planting because it rained for a month straight & they would have washed away. I also have a few pumpkin plants that were grown from pumpkin seeds that have started to flower. We have until *hopefully* end of August/ 1st of september but no later then that. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated, Thank You
First of all, I will say that removing plants from the property is illegal where I live. Some people choose to do it, anyway, I'm sure, and while many probably get away with it, I personally know one woman who was required to "restore" the property to the same condition it was in when the buyer first looked at it. That cost her a couple thousand dollars, as I recall. So, you might want to find out whether the law in your area says anything about removing in-ground plants from a property that's being vacated.
If you decide to move some or all of your plants, you would probably have to plant them in containers and then replant them at your new home. Alternatively, you could just keep them in containers for the duration of their lives. A plant suffers a certain amount of stress every time it is uprooted and replanted. Even moving a plant from a small container to a larger one causes it to suffer a certain amount of stress. The reaction to the stress is that the plant drops any flowers or fruit it may have produced, to enable all of its energy to be directed toward the production of new feeder roots. Only after the roots are established will the plant again begin to produce flowers and fruit. So, before digging up everything, you may want to consider whether the remainder of your growing season will allow sufficient time for the plant to recover from being moved.
If you decide to move some or all of your plants, you would probably have to plant them in containers and then replant them at your new home. Alternatively, you could just keep them in containers for the duration of their lives. A plant suffers a certain amount of stress every time it is uprooted and replanted. Even moving a plant from a small container to a larger one causes it to suffer a certain amount of stress. The reaction to the stress is that the plant drops any flowers or fruit it may have produced, to enable all of its energy to be directed toward the production of new feeder roots. Only after the roots are established will the plant again begin to produce flowers and fruit. So, before digging up everything, you may want to consider whether the remainder of your growing season will allow sufficient time for the plant to recover from being moved.
I wouldn't try and move the plants, this late in the season. JMHO. The stress for them I think would be too much- and would probably cause them to loose most of their fruit, too. How far away from your current place are you moving? Perhaps it's worth talking to the new people that are moving in, and asking if you can still drop by and pick the fruits/plants when they're ripe/care for the garden until the season is over?
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gixxerific
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 5889
- Joined: Fri Jun 26, 2009 5:42 pm
- Location: Wentzville, MO (Just West oF St. Louis) Zone 5B
When I moved to this house 4-5 years ago I had a great garden at my last house though much smaller than mine now.
But I put 4-5 tomatoes in pots and brought them with me. There was a problem with the other peoples bank at the very last minute. Like we were getting ready to pull out of the driveway for the last time kind of last min.
So we were in limbo for the weekend, this was on a Fri. The plants stayed in my truck bed all weekend and were put in the ground by the next weekend they did alright. No prizewinners but I had tomatoes. in my new house. This was in the middle of summer mind you.
It can happen but, no guarantees.
But I put 4-5 tomatoes in pots and brought them with me. There was a problem with the other peoples bank at the very last minute. Like we were getting ready to pull out of the driveway for the last time kind of last min.
So we were in limbo for the weekend, this was on a Fri. The plants stayed in my truck bed all weekend and were put in the ground by the next weekend they did alright. No prizewinners but I had tomatoes. in my new house. This was in the middle of summer mind you.It can happen but, no guarantees.