Transplanting and Splitting Perennials

You know what sucks?  Transplanting and splitting perennials.

It's back-breaking work - digging, lifting, moving, watering.  And yet somehow, every spring, I cannot WAIT to do it!  Back in my first-ever blog post, I mentioned how growing anything in Canada has this wonderful "grow, learn, try again" cycle.  Same thing applies to perennial gardens - all summer you get to watch them grow and wish they were planted somewhere else - and then in spring you get the chance to actually make those changes (if you remember where everything is planted and what is what, which is a pretty big if...).

A perennial is a plant that comes back every year in the same(ish) place (think Hosta or Phlox) whereas an annual has to be re-purchased and re-planted each year (think Impatiens or Petunias).  If you have trouble remembering that, it's probably because both words basically mean "yearly" except that one means it comes back yearly and the other means it gets planted yearly...which is frankly a terrible system if you ask me!

Anyways...perennial gardens are the freaking best because they just come back every single year without you having to do much.  Many people have them, and 'tis the season to put a little effort into them, so here are some tips.

Splitting and Transplanting 101

At this time of year, most perennials are starting to peek above the surface of the soil.  You might see Peonies, Hostas, Day Lillies, Irises and others poking their green bits through last year's dead stems and foliage. This happens as the soil thaws, and indicates that it's the perfect time for moving and maintenance.   Here's how I do it.

Have the right tools ready.  You'll need garden gloves, a spade, a hose or watering can, and a few large, empty old plastic pots.  If you have it, a wheelbarrow and some compost would be great.

Cut back the old growth.  This is usually pretty straightforward, but not always.  In most cases, just chop back the old stems and leaves.  Often, you can just pull them and they'll fall out because they're so rotted by this time of year - but if they don't come off easily, don't yank them.  Cut them back with pruners or scissors, about an inch above the surface.  Be careful not to chop any new (green) growth.  The less-straightforward cases are things like Hydrangeas, which you sometimes have to prune like a shrub...I'm still trying to figure these ones out.  Basically, if the plant has established, woody stems with buds forming, the cutting back instructions above probably don't apply.

Start digging.  Hold the phone.  How do you even know what you're looking at when a plant is just emerging from the ground?  Time and practice, I'm afraid.  You'll have to know your garden and what's in it pretty well before you can ID a plant at this stage.  Enlist in a friend who knows things, send them a picture, see if they can figure it out.  Or, if all else fails, there's an app for that.  Alternatively, if you know ahead of time that you're going to do some transplanting in the spring, stick a label or marker of some kind (use permanent ink) at the base of the plant for easy identification after the snow melts.

Ok, now you can start digging.  If you're moving an entire plant to a new home, you'll want to dig in all the way around the plant, digging straight to avoid disrupting the the roots too much.  Once you've stuck your shovel in all the way around the plant, lean on the shovel handle to pop the whole thing up and on to your shovel.  This is easiest to do and most effective when the soil is moist.  Carefully pick the whole thing up and place it in a large pot (or just on the ground).  Set it aside, and keep going until you've dug up all the plants you're planning on moving.  The ones you've dug up will be fine in the pots for a remarkably long time - I'd say a week or so as long as you water them daily. 

If you're splitting... Ok rewind.  Why would we split a plant in half?  There are a few reasons.  Reason #1: Over time, perennials lose their vigor. They basically die year by year from the inside out. Splitting them allows you to capitalize on the newer, outer growth by, essentially, creating a new "center" of the plant.  Reason #2: You get new plants FOR FREE that you can plant somewhere else or share with friends.  So then HOW do you split?  Well, pretty much the same as the digging instructions above, except you chop right into the plant.  It's going to seem like you're killing it, but you're probably not.  Some plants can withstand more splitting than others, so be sure to look up specific details for the plant variety you're trying to move.  I have yet to successfully split or move my beloved Japanese Anemone that's tucked away at the back of the property.

Ok, so now you have a bunch of pots full of dirt and root balls.  This is the fun part...

Place the pots in the actual garden beds on the spots where you want to transplant them.  Step back.  Rearrange them.  Step back again.  Rearrange them again.  Leave them there until you're ready to plant each one.  I find it really helps to visualize where they are going to go, and this method allows you to do it without losing track of what you want where.

Now start digging...again.   In the spots where you've placed a pot, dig a hole, and make it bigger than you think you'll need.  If it's an established bed with mulch on it already, move the wood chips aside so you can place them back over the soil when you're done.  Now soak the hole with water...enough to leave a mucky puddle at the bottom.  If you have some, now is the time to throw in some compost as well.

Placing your perennial is pretty easy.  Try not to plant it down any deeper (or shallower) than it was before you moved it.  Fill the hole with soil, and water it in well.  DONE!  

...and now, if you're me, do it 1000 more times each spring because there's always a slightly better spot for that plant.

Thank goodness for winter, or I'd never have the energy for this nonsense.

Garden Beds vs. Planter Pots

When I first started gardening, I didn't have a yard, let alone garden beds.  I lived in an apartment with an East-facing concrete balcony...so pots were my only option.  I feel like it's safe to assume that many people's gardening endeavors begin this way, which is kind of unfortunate because growing in pots (effectively) is quite challenging.  But often we find ourselves with limited choices - so I'm going to try to put together a list of some of the pros and cons, and some helpful hints for growing in pots vs. growing in garden beds or raised beds.  As always, I'll be focusing primarily on vegetables, herbs, and edible flowers, but much of this can be applied to anything you're growing.

Growing In Pots

Pros

• Transportable - you can chase the sunlight throughout the day or the season.
• Controllable - you decide what kind of soil goes into the pot.  You get to circumvent nature!
• Well-drained - if you use potting soil, water will drain nicely through the holes in the bottom of the pot.

Cons

• The soil in pots dries out WAY faster than soil in the ground, especially if it's in direct sunlight.  Chances are, you're going to need to water them a MINIMUM of every other day.  Not ideal.
• Choosing the right size of pot is challenging at first.  Often, we'll choose pots that are far too small for the plants once they mature, meaning you'll either need to transplant to a larger pot, or you'll stunt the healthy growth of your plant.
• You will definitely need to fertilize.  Potting soil often has slow release fertilizer built into it that lasts anywhere from 1-3 months.  Once that's used up, you'll need to begin adding fertilizer.
• Pots can make a mess of your deck as they drain.  

Tips

• Bigger is better.  Buy pots that are bigger than you think you will need.  Plastic ones are fine, but porcelain ones are much better because they're less likely to blow over in the wind.
• If you're putting more than one variety of plant in a planter, make sure their sun and water demands are similar.  When I'm doing herb pots, I'll put the sage, rosemary and mint together because they can withstand a little drought.  Likewise, I put basil, parsley and cilantro together because they need lots of water.
• Put your pots close to your water source.  This applies to any garden, really.  The easier it is to water the gardens, the more likely you will actually do it - and with planter pots, you'll need to do it frequently.
• Go for fragrance!  If you're keeping your pots on a deck or near where you will sit, consider some nice, fragrant herbs or edible flowers.  There's nothing better than getting a passing whiff of basil or dill every time the wind blows.

The bottom line here is that you'll need to water your pots often.  They are rather labour intensive, so choose your location and plant varieties accordingly.

Growing in Garden Beds

Pros

• Consistent moisture - you'll have to water these beds less - maybe barely at all, depending on the weather.
• You'll be improving and building your soil for the long term.  
• You'll be welcoming worms and other beneficial critters to your soil
• You can plant diverse crops in one place, so that they can benefit from one another (for example one plant might deter a certain kind of bug that's attracted to one of your other plants).
• You can choose to plant square-foot style or in rows.  
• Pretty much all plant varieties will thrive in this environment.

Cons

• The bending...even with raised beds, prepare for a sore back.
• You're at the whim of nature...those maple keys that are falling in your gardens?  Good luck.
• You'll need to use mulch or you'll be overrun with weeds.  
• You'll have to prepare the beds each spring.  At first, this will mean adding lots of compost and turning the soil (deeply, if you're planning on growing root vegetables), removing rocks and weeds.  However, once your garden is well established after a few years, you won't need to do any digging.  Just throw a layer of compost on top and off you go!

Tips

• Remember - when you're making a garden bed, the goal is to improve the SOIL.  Each time you plant in your garden, you'll be adding organic matter to the soil, helping it become lighter, fluffier and better-drained as the years pass.  
• Most common vegetables deplete soil nutrients as they access and use them.  Some crops, like beans and peas, actually put nutrients back IN to the soil.  This is why crop rotation is important, so try not to plant the same crop in the same place every time.
• Mulch mulch mulch.  Without mulch, you will have weeds.  When I first started gardening I thought the problem with weeds was just the appearance.  NOPE.  They compete for the nutrients in the soil, depleting that which you were hoping would be used by the plants that you WANTED there.  Choose a mulch that will add to the soil once it is mixed in - grass clippings and shredded leaves are great, and fairly readily available.

The bottom line with garden beds is that they offer flexibility in terms of what you can grow, and that your hard work is more of an investment, as you'll be working towards improving your soil long-term.

What grows best where?

For the record, this is not based in science - just my own experiences growing in pots vs. in the ground.  Take it or leave it.

Pots - think lettuces and leaves such as kale and chard, edible flowers such as nasturtium, annual herbs such as cilantro and basil, plants that need to be contained lest they grow out of control, like mint, determinate varieties of tomatoes (ones that only get so tall and then stop), and compact squash varieties such as zucchini.

Garden Beds - tall vegetable plants like corn, vegetables that need a trellis such as cucumber and winter squash varieties, vegetables that improve the soil (nitrogen fixers) such as beans, peas and legumes, most root vegetables, broccoli, caluflower, and cabbage.

How Not to Kill Your Seedlings

I've just wrapped up my spring seed share!  I had an abundance of seeds (as I always do - I may have a bit of a problem) and normally at this time of year, I run a seed starting party out of my house to share these seeds at a minimal cost.  But, COVID.  So instead, I created a Google Form where friends could order a personalized collection of seeds from my stash.  Because these come without seed packets, this post is an effort to simplify seed starting with some universal guidelines.

The only people who haven't killed seedlings before are the people who haven't tried to grow them in the first place.  I'm serious...it's like a right of passage.  It makes sense, though, when you think about it.  What we're doing when we start seeds indoors is outsmart nature - to extend the growing season by forcing seed germination in unnatural conditions, before the seed is naturally ready.  As such, they require a particular set of conditions in order to survive and thrive.  So here it is - my short list on how NOT to kill your seedlings.

1. Don't plant ALL of your seeds indoors.

Just because most seeds CAN be started indoors doesn't mean they SHOULD be.  Likewise, if you plant ALL of them outdoors after the May long weekend, they'll probably still grow.  So how do you know what to plant where and when?  Here's what I usually do:

Do plant indoors: compact lettuces like iceburg or romaine, as well as tomatoes, peppers, celery, kale, herbs and most edible flowers.

Plant directly in the ground after May 24: all root vegetables, beans and peas (their shallow roots make them hard to transplant) and nasturtiums.

Doesn't matter: squash, cucumber, chard, and melons.  

If you're still not sure, do a little experiment.  If you have enough seeds, when you go to transplant them outside, plant another seed right beside them.  Watch them both and see which one does better.  Chances are, after a week or two, the direct-planted seed will have caught up to your seedling.

2. Don't plant them too deep or too shallow.  

This one's actually pretty easy to avoid.  You can use the seed packet instructions for this, but I don't do that anymore because there's a good rule of thumb.  Plant your seeds at a depth of about 3x the size of the seed.  For tiny seeds, that means they're going to be barely below the surface.  For larger seeds like beans or corn, you're looking at more like 2-3 cm below the surface.

3. Don't deprive them of sunlight.

Something that surprised me to learn is that our growing season has as much to do with daylight hours as it does with warmth; this is why, if you've ever tried to grow anything indoors in the winter, it's likely failed to thrive.  

If seedlings don't get adequate daylight, they'll get "leggy" - meaning they'll grow a long, unstable stem.  That's because their leaves are literally reaching for every drop of sunlight they can get.  If your plants get leggy it's not the end of the world, but it's not a great start either.

In Canada (I'm just outside the GTA), March and April BARELY offer enough daylight hours to start your seeds, but you can optimize the chances that your plants will thrive despite this.  Here's how:

• Choose a South-facing window and put them as close to it as humanly possible.  In spring, this is the only spot where you're likely to get direct sunlight during mid-day. 
• Don't start them too early - check the seed packets and do not start the seeds before the date provided.  In fact, if there's a range given, use the later end of the range.
• If you're using pots to start your seeds, fill them with soil until they're level with the top of the pot. In the early days of your seed growth, this will prevent them from being shaded by the sides of the pot.

4.  Don't let them dry out, but don't drown them either.  

Probably safe to say (without any actual scientific investigation) that this is the number one way that people kill their seedlings.  Seedlings in small peat pots or pellets (especially if placed in a South-facing window) will dry out in a hurry.  The soil should always be moist, so you'll need to water them every 1-2 days, which is a lot more than that spider plant you've been neglecting but still somehow seems to grow.  Here are some tips:

• Make sure you have the right tools in advance.  An indoor watering can with a narrow spout and a tray beneath your pots for overflow (so you can feel safe soaking them) are critical.  You may also want a small spray bottle to water your seedlings when they're tiny to avoid damaging them with an aggressive stream.
• Don't plant your seedlings if you're planning to go away for any extended length (3 or more days) of time in the following two to three weeks.  They'll die.  Luckily, we're all stuck at home right now anyways, so that's good news.  Ugh.
• Y'know those mini greenhouses you can buy at the store that come pre-loaded with peat pellets and have a clear plastic lid?  They're great at keeping the soil moist to allow your seeds to germinate, but as soon as those seedlings come up, you have to take it off permanently.  The amount of moisture and the lack of air circulation is a perfect breeding ground for molds that can attack the base of your seedling stems.  And here's the problem - unless you're planting all the same kinds of seeds in your greenhouse, germination is going to occur at different times; some varieties take 2 days, some take 3-4 weeks. This renders the greenhouse useless for those slow-to-germinate seeds, as you'll have to take the lid off as soon as your quick-to-germinate seedlings appear.
• If all else fails, speak moistly to them and see what happens.





PMJT knows...

Good luck with your plantings, and don't hesitate to DM me with questions @sowittilyougrowit on Instagram.  Have fun!

I have a yard, now what?

I have a yard, now what?

If you've spent most of your adult life in rentals, apartments, or condos, moving in to a place with an actual YARD can be super exciting, especially if you've been dreaming of having a garden one day.

My friend Miranda is experiencing this at the moment.  After years of living above a dentist's office with barely a window she could grow anything in (let alone a yard), she's now the owner of an adorable yellow heritage home with a massive yard just outside Kingston, Ontario.  Since she and her family moved in last October, she's been impassively waiting for spring to get her hands in the dirt (after what seemed like the longest winter EVER).  

There's nothing quite as exciting as a blank slate.  There's also nothing quite as intimidating.

A colleague of mine who is also experiencing her first spring in a new home recently expressed this intimidation (trepidation? overwhelm?) to me in passing.  Phrases like "I don't have a green thumb" and "I just don't know where to start" are pretty common among new home owners.  I remember this feeling well - and as such, this post is dedicated to Miranda, my colleague Alice, and the rest of you out there for whom the initial excitement of a yard is rapidly transitioning to the gardener's equivalent of writer's block.  

In an older or previously owned home, watch and wait...

If you've moved into an older or previously owned home, there are probably some pretty cool surprises hiding below the soil.  Even if you moved in in the middle of summer, landscapes change so much throughout the seasons that you'll want to make sure you've seen what comes up for an entire year before making any major decisions.  Shrubs and perennials flower at different times of year, so something that you didn't love during the summer may be stunning in the spring or fall (burning bush, for example, turns bright red in the fall but is pretty boring throughout the rest of the year).  There may be spring bulbs that only appear for a short time, and it would be a shame to rip them out unknowingly.

You may be super eager to get going on your landscape the first year that you are in your home, and that's fine - but remember - plants are expensive.  If you rip everything out right away, you'll end up having to purchase new plants.  Many shrubs can be pruned back and moved with a little effort, and splitting or moving perennials to a new location is a breeze - but you can't do it effectively if you don't know what's there in the first place!

That said, if you do decide to wait it out before changing anything, make sure you have a method for recording what is where.  A journal works, and if you're a visual person, you can even plot out your beds on paper.  Another option is to tag the plants as they come up using Popsicle sticks and PERMANENT marker (your work will go to waste if you don't use permanent, since it'll be there over winter).

If you're planning on making new garden beds or perhaps a raised bed for vegetables, the reason you'll want to wait is to determine where the sunny and shaded areas of your yard are throughout the growing season.  A sunny spot in July may be entirely shaded in May or September, and direct sun is too important to overlook.  Most fruiting (zucchini, beans, tomato) or root (carrot, parsnip) vegetables require full sun...only some vegetables grown for their greens can withstand shade, so this is critical.  That said, if you have no trees, you're probably good to go!

Above all, try to be patient.  Let your gardens reveal their secrets.  Use the time as a chance to learn about the different types of shrubs and plants that grow on your property.  Invest in some reference books (I particularly like the Lone Pine series).  Trust me - it'll be worth the wait.

In a new build, give your soil some love...

If you've moved in to a brand new build, it has likely been minimally landscaped for you.  Perhaps the builders threw in a few hardy shrubs.  Your biggest issue is likely to be the quality of your soil.  Like sunlight, good soil is too important to overlook.

If you were to throw vegetable seeds into the ground in a newly developed neighbourhood, you might start off thinking you've been successful (the plant will probably grow), but you'll likely run into problems in a hurry.  Root vegetables will be stumpy or under-developed, plants will only fruit minimally or not at all, and perhaps worst of all, your plants will be weak, making them susceptible to problems and pests that could potentially come back to haunt you year after year once established.

One way to strengthen your plants is to use a water-soluble chemical fertilizer like Miracle Grow...but here's the catch: THESE DO NOT IMPROVE THE SOIL, THEY JUST FEED THE PLANT.  So your plant may thrive, but it will continue to deplete the nutrients in the soil without adding anything back.  So go ahead and use these fertilizers, but you'll have to take other measures to improve the soil.

I'm not going to get into soil PH or composition anything like that.  That just complicates things.  Here's what you need to do: ADD ORGANIC COMPOST.  Start your own composter if you like.  Add vegetable scraps, grass clippings, and sawdust if you have it.  But if this is your first year in a new build, you're going to want something right away, and compost takes time.

Your easiest bet is to purchase some composted sheep or cow manure...and by some I mean enough to cover your garden beds at a depth of about 4 inches.  It's a lot, so try to get it on sale.  You can usually order ahead for easy pickup.

A lot of municipalities that have a green-bin program will provide free compost (bring your own recycle bin to fill up) sometime in the spring.  If you log on to your local municipality's waste management website, you'll probably be able to find a schedule and locations.  It's worthwhile to take a peek.

A third way to access compost is via a local animal farmer if you're lucky enough to know one.  It never hurts to reach out and see if they can help!

Now, go get started!

My hope is always to keep gardening simple and enjoyable for the folks who happen to read this blog.  My bottom line is "just throw something in the ground and see what happens" - so all of the above suggestions are just that - suggestions.  Nature is remarkably resilient, and gardening is a constant learning experience where you will always learn more by DOING than by reading this budget-ass blog.  So if these suggestions help, great.  If they overwhelm you, ignore them and learn as you go.  

Good luck!