When is the best time of year to transplant Roses of Sharon shrubs?

Question

I have some Roses of Sharon shrubs near my windows. I like the bushes, but not their location, so I'd like to transplant them.

What is the best time of year to do that?

Answer 1

The least stressful time of year to move them will be in early spring just before bud break. That way you damage the plant only minimally, and it will immediately begin to repair as it begins to bud out.

Take it up with the largest intact root ball you can handle (the larger, the better). Plant in the new location in a hole wide enough that the root ball does not touch the edges. Pack the soil around the edges, add compost if you so desire. Make sure the plant is high enough that the top of the root flare is visible (if necessary, dig around carefully if the plant was too deep originally).

Then water it in, and keep the soil moist until it is well rooted. Fertilizer can be applied at the time growth starts, if you want. Organic mulch in a layer under the plant will hep with moisture conservation, weed control, evening the soil temp, and adding organic matter.

Answer 2

The best time to move shrubs, trees is the winter. But the success if pretty iffy depending on the age of the tree/shrub. To ensure success or close to it you should dig a trench around your shrubs about a foot deep on the 'drip' line of your plants. Then you fill the trenches in with straw. Keep watered within this new 'root ball'. The plants will put out feeder roots within this root ball so that when moved it'll be able to handle getting water and chemicals out of the soil where ever you chose to replant. Rose of Sharon is normally a narrower shrub so the trench should be as wide as the crown of the shrub. Smaller the ball the easier it will be to pop it up and put it on a ball cart or tarp to drag to new planting location. I'd do the trench and straw now and in the spring before the shrub starts putting out new shoots I'd move it. Make sure you water the replanted shrubs well. Only dig down as deep as the root ball no further or your shrub will settle and get planted too deeply. I'd also purchase mycorrhisae (sp) to add to the soil after trenching and then again after transplanting to help with stress. Be careful with fertilizer. I wouldn't fertilize until a month or so after transplanting. When we see how big these shrubs are and know more about your conditions, soil we'll be able to give even more detailed instructions.