growing giants is all about growing a giant root mass.. to eventually support the giant above ...

IF!!! .. on digging.. you chop off some of the roots.. you WILL set it back ..

if you do NOT.. you probably wont ...

listen.. you do what you gotta do .. when you need to do it ...

i THINK my point.. in one of the other posts.. was to .. plan the giants to NOT NEED TO BE MOVED ... moving in and out.. smaller ones ..

we have all messed up on planning.. so what.. see above.. you do what you gotta do ..

i did NOT mean to say you reset the clock back to day one.. you might just set yourself back a season or two.. depending on how poorly you dug the root mass ...

and all that said.. if you are digging it out from under a maple.. you probably will gain a year or two.. rather than lose such

quit worrying.. throw them on the driveway.. yadda yadda.. lol ...

ken

I agree with Ken, you do it when you have to do it, when you remember it, when you feel like it, when it is not too hot!

I have moved some and noticed no disruption, while others have been smaller leaved and tighter form the following year.....and I always take as big a root mass as I can handle. Water it well for the next couple of weeks, then treat as normal.

Paul

This is a concern of mine as well � I plan to dig up my three giant Elegans next spring � amend the soil underneath and replant right where they were.

Sounds to me if I get enough of the root ball I can have them the same size they are now (or close enough) when I put them back into the amended soil.

I agree with Ken, plan to where you don't have to move them. But in my case the soil hasn't been touched in over 8 years. I think regardless if I reset the clock I will have stronger happier hostas in the long run.

Gardening will surely teach you patience (at least in my experience).

Thanks all !

Ludi

I think "set it back" is a more accurate description than "reset".
I have 2 Sagaes that were bought at the same time, same size. Planted next to each other in a holding bed. Then I decided to overhaul all my gardens, so the holding bed became a multi-year bed. They were huge by the time I was ready to move them. I decided to keep one in it's current location & move the other. I had a massive root ball so I know I got alot of the roots, but most likely severed a few.

Now, the plant didn't shrink at all, it looked great that year even though I moved it after it was leafed out (I used Ken's taping method). But 3 years later, you can tell one is smaller than the other. It looks like it is a year behind the other one. After 3 years it has not caught up, but is growing steadily. I think it will probably always look a year behind the other one. I don't care, it's growing like crazy and is huge! If I didn't have the other one to compare to, I would never know it was set back a little.

Wendy

Ludi,

There's no need to do that enormous amount of work of digging up those big guys just to amend the soil. Just top dress the soil in the entire area with compost or a composted mulch (see below) and let the worms do the work for you. Unless you are dealing with a significant amount of soil compaction this will do just fine. Even if you do have a lot of soil compaction loosening it with a fork (don't turn the soil, just stick the fork in and lean to one side) and then mulching will do the trick. Oh and don't forget the most important thing water, water, and then more water.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Enriching mulch

I did move her away from the nasty maple tree! I should say "we" dug her. I just couldn't bring myself to do it, so I turned my head while my husband got her. He did very well with her roots. She had a huge root ball, and he did sever a few, but not many. I told him to treat her like a new born! I had him too nervous to be hasty! Haha! I've been keeping her well watered, and did move her when it was still fairly cool out. She is looking pretty good! I feel much better now! :) Unless we get the small acreage that we are looking at, she is in her final home! If we do move, I will be waiting until mid to late September (Ia zone 4b/5a) to move her. Thanks for putting my mind at ease! Whew!