Help! How do I transplant?

Plan - Prep - Plant Your Way To Beautiful Gardens And Landscapes

Help! How do I transplant?

by Trish
(Lakewood, OH)

How do I transplant Emerald Green Arborvitae?

My neighbor has about 15 - 18" Emerald Green Arborvitae they said I could have. The problem is I cannot transplant them until Spring. Is there anyway to dig them up now and perhaps keep them in the garage until spring without killing them. We are in Northern Ohio and it will be cold, but the ground has not froze yet.

Thank you for your help.

Comments for
Help! How do I transplant?

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Dec 17, 2011

Small Trees
by: Kimberly

Hi Trish, Thanks for responding and thanks Morton for sharing information for Trish.

Trish, what Morton is talking about is possible for you to do. My one concern is your winters can be cold in Northern Ohio and soon the ground will freeze. How many trees are you talking about?

One of the problems people have when transplanting is harming the tap or mother root system. If you decide to take them out of the ground now, make sure you follow Morton's instructions so you won't harm the major roots.

If you put the small trees in containers or bags, use some good quality top soil around them to protect their roots.

The other option you have is to leave them in the ground over the winter. Right now you could make sure you have mulch or pine straw around the base of each small tree.

These are a few options for you. Let us know what you decide. Thanks and look forward to hearing from you. Thanks again Morton for your input.
Kimberly

Dec 17, 2011

Emerald Green
by: Morton

Based on my experience at a Production nursery where we grow this plant in open ground. mid/late autumn we "wrench" open ground trees, (pull a cutter bar through the ground which cuts bottom/side roots about 6-8" underground. This allows time for new feeder roots to grow before winter and makes lifting these plants easier (Late winter) this is when we dig them up and put them into large planter bags. These plants are an average 30-40" tall and have been in ground nearly 2 years(wrenched annually)
Hand wrench the trees,(Cut roots with a spade about 6" from trunk and about a month later lift and put into planter bags. 18" tall is still small, We in NZ are in early summer so I assume its cooler season for you and these are hardy as, I would cut around tree with a spade, lift it out with reasonable amount of soil around the roots, bag it up and water well

Dec 16, 2011

More Information
by: Anonymous

The neighbors have had them planted about a year, maybe. They are pretty small, some more than others and are about 1.5" feet apart.

Dec 16, 2011

Transplant Small Arborvitae Tree
by: Kimberly

Hi Trish, Kimberly here from landscape solutions for you. Thank you for asking the question on transplanting your neighbor's tree.

How long has the tree been in the ground? This will determine if you are able to transplant it into a pot. If the small tree has been in the ground for a little while, the roots may be established. You could possibly damage the roots, and put the tree into shock.

If it has only been planted a for a short amount of time, it is doable to transplant into a container for the winter months.

Let us know your situation and we can go from there. Thanks again Trish for asking the question and look forward to hearing from you.
Kimberly

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Hello Mrs. Kimberly:
From Pamela
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I believe my Loropetalum
is 100% better.
It truly looks
better than it did
when we 1st planted it. Thank you
for providing me
with EXCELLENT tips
as I was about
to dig it up. :)