I have searched extensively and read through about a dozen websites regarding rose-care, winterizing, planting, etc. etc., and cannot seem to find a single guide to transplanting a mature rose bush.
I will be moving from Boulder, CO to a similar climate in mountainous southern Utah next Spring, and I want to put my roses into large containers and take them with me to put in my new garden next to my future home.
I know that transplanting a mature (ten-year-old) rose isn't easy or bound to be successful; however, I know that they will die if I leave them behind on this rental property.
Therefore, I feel that they (I have six: one miniature, one old-fashioned, two standard, and two climbers -- nothing exotic) have a better chance of continuing to live if I take them with me, no matter what the risks. I studied enough basic rose care to help my bushes thrive despite severely cold winters, draught, and being over-watered for four years (due to a nasty neighbor who refused to repair a leaking irrigation ditch), and I feel I owe them a chance at a better home. (And yes, I know I could "just buy some new ones," but I'm a sentimental person and I really like my "plucky" bushes.)
My question really boils down to this: do I dig them up in the Spring, just as new growth appears (I.e., now), or do I do it in the Fall, as they are going dormant?
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CatGiorgia
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- Joined: Tue May 16, 2006 1:44 am
- Location: Theocratic Plutocracy of No. Amer.
Hi CatGiorgia,
You can do it now or in the fall.
If you are going to take other plants or divide and take some with you, you can start potting them up now and sink them into the ground for the summer or until you move. Then you can just pull them for your move. We renovated the exterior of our house and the entire yard one year. I had to dig up 500 plants and keep them in pots for the summer. By the time I could plant, the cold weather had set in. I placed the plants, in their pots, where I wanted to sink them into the ground again and covered the pots and soil with old sheets and blankets to keep them from freezing. I was sinking pots into the ground in January. Wherever the ground wasn't covered, it was frozen. I only lost about 10 plants.
Best of luck in your new home!
Newt
You can do it now or in the fall.
If you are going to take other plants or divide and take some with you, you can start potting them up now and sink them into the ground for the summer or until you move. Then you can just pull them for your move. We renovated the exterior of our house and the entire yard one year. I had to dig up 500 plants and keep them in pots for the summer. By the time I could plant, the cold weather had set in. I placed the plants, in their pots, where I wanted to sink them into the ground again and covered the pots and soil with old sheets and blankets to keep them from freezing. I was sinking pots into the ground in January. Wherever the ground wasn't covered, it was frozen. I only lost about 10 plants.
Best of luck in your new home!
Newt
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CatGiorgia
- Newly Registered
- Posts: 5
- Joined: Tue May 16, 2006 1:44 am
- Location: Theocratic Plutocracy of No. Amer.
That's exactly what I was planning to do! I've been collecting big, large, and huge pots for two years, and I was going to put my perennials into the pots and then put the pots right back into the ground where the plant came from. I just wasn't sure if I could do this with the roses.Newt wrote:Hi CatGiorgia,
....
you can start potting them up now and sink them into the ground for the summer or until you move. Then you can just pull them for your move.
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Newt
And thank you for the link.
PS: I also got a very nice e-mail reply from a Rosarian here in Colorado, who gave me some tips on the best times to dig up plants: when they're dormant. His major concern was the amount of time that the plants would be "on the road." But, given that they will be in planters, rather than bare-root in bags, I'm hopeful that they'll make it.