Sunday, April 26, 2009

Moving Pachysandra terminalis-Japanese Spurge in Winter?!?

Hi, I am moving some Pachysandra terminalis-Japanese Spurge from my old house to my new house but I have to do it now (late fall, near 40-50 degrees) before the house sells! What can I do to ensure this transplant is successful come spring? I would love any advice!!!

Moving Pachysandra terminalis-Japanese Spurge in Winter?!?
The quicker the better! Plants don't photosynthesize below 50 degrees F, so they won't be able to put roots down to get themselves settled before winter. If you can't get them in the ground, get some and put them in pots and baby them through the Winter, then plop them in the ground in the Spring. If you do transplant, get as much of the root system as you can. Dig the new hole (don't let the roots dry out, wrap them in damp newspaper and plastic wrap to transport, or stick them in a pot), water the hole - after the water has drained out put the pachysandra in and water it again. Don't fertilize as you don't want to encourage new top growth (that will stress the plant for the winter) - unless you use a fertilizer that is REALLY high in the last of the three numbers (0-0-50, etc.) as that will encourage root growth. You could also cover the pachysandra with a layer of dead leaves for the winter, to give it extra protection against drying out, etc.





(Yep, if it's in a pot treat it like any other indoor plant - make sure it gets the right amount of sun, water, etc.; and then transplant it outside in the Spring.)
Reply:Go ahead and dig it up and transplant it, making sure that you water them well before you dig them out and again after you've transplanted. If your plant look distressed a couple of days later and don't seem to want to take the transplant you can cut them down as new growth will come up from the roots in spring.If you're not moving until spring you could transplant into pots now and move them in the spring.


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