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I just moved into a new home and have discovered three or four Rose of Sharon trees that I would love to have thrive. They are being crowded out by other trees and I didn't know if I could move them elsewhere without hurting them. They are quite tall but thin and have a couple of blooms on them. What do you think? Where would they do best? Thanks! Lori
Answer
Hi Lori, The best time to move the Rose of
Sharons (ROS) would be between the end of
August and the end of September. ROS prefer
full sun (7-8 hrs of sun daily), moist but well
drained soil. They grow to about 9' tall and 9'
wide. They bloom in late summer.
To transplant ROS:
Cut each ROS back by 1/3 (take off the top
1/3 of the plant)- cut the stem on an angle so
the water drains off of it
Dig out the plant so there is a good size root
ball attached
Dig the new hole 2 times the size of the root
ball, step into the hole and tamp down the loose
soil so there is a solid base that prevents the tree
from sinking
Add some compost or composted leaf litter to the
hole- these amendments hold water and moisture
Plant the tree and make sure the root flare is
above the level of the ground-this is the base
part of the stem of the tree that flares out near
the roots
Water plant before filling hole; allow the water
to soak in
Backfill hole with the soil you originally removed.
Do not put soil over top of the root flare. Pack soil
gently around roots to remove air pockets
Create a moat around each plant about 2 feet
from the stem to hold water
Add 2-3" only of mulch around base of tree, do
not go above root flare or touch the stem of the
tree with the mulch
Water every 3 days deeply, meaning a total of
one - five gallon bucket of water on each tree until
Mother Nature starts supplying natural rain on a
regular basis or until the middle of October.
Plant the trees far enough away from each other
so they can grow to their maximum width, the
stems should be about 10-12' apart.
Good Luck
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About Linda Lillie
Linda K. Lillie is the President of Sprigs & Twigs, Inc, the premier
landscape design and maintenance, tree care, lawn care, stonework, and carpentry
service provider in southeastern Connecticut since 1997. She is a graduate of
Connecticut College in Botany, a Connecticut Master Gardener and a national
award winning landscape designer for her landscape design and landscape installation work.
