Well, if it was 200 clumps of Stella D'Oro, I'd pass
But 200 different daylilies? If I knew I had space for them, and time, yeah I'd do it.
Have plenty of tagging material, plastic bags and some willing friends. Pre dig your holes, maybe?
Might require a 6-pack and a couple of pizzas too...
Bravery is not being unafraid. Bravery is being afraid and living life anyways.
I'm thinking backhoe! NOBODY wants to dig holes for 200 mature clumps-I don't care how much food and drink you give them! It's one thing to slowly add plants over time. It's a whole other thing to get them all at once.
200 clumps? Yes, according to what they were, how much free labor is available and how much space is available. I have over 200 clumps, but they were added a few at a time. It would certainly be a lot of work to dig and replant 200 clumps, especially if they were all large clumps. If there are duplicates you would not have to plant them all, if there are cultivars among them you don't want you would not have to plant them all, if the clumps are very large you could replant just a small clump cut from the larger clumps. However if those clumps are as large as some of mine you would still be looking a huge amount of work. If it could be done over a matter of months and not put you having to rush that would make all the difference in the world.
So just some things to consider, and only you know the answers to all those questions, and a few dozen others probably that have yet to be mentioned.
Gosh I just realized I omitted one of the very most important things, if the soil you are digging from or planting to is rock hard soil clay or something similar, I would just walk on by. My clumps are in very easy to dig soil now, so that could be a make or break part of the deal.
How much time do you have to take them? a week? A year? I am idiotic enough, I would go for it, then kick myself every time I dig a plant. But I would probably be thrilled once it was all over.
I'd get a few cheap hard-plastic kiddie pools and put them in the pools with some water for the roots until I could get them all planted. Daylilies might appreciate the water during this summer heat and it would help keep them alive until you could get them all in the ground as time and your physical strength can handle.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters, compared to what lies within us. Garden Rooms and Becky's Budget Garden
Diggerofdirt said:What if you had the opportunity to get over 200 clumps of daylilys would you take on that many. Actually just how would you go about that undertaking?
Keep us updated. I'd love to hear what you decide.
I often wonder how I will cut back when the time comes. I have about 250 registered cultivars. Also 500+ in one seedling bed (2 years old) and 300 seedlings in another bed (new this year).
I would think you would need help from as many friends you can gather. Tell them to bring their trucks and shovels. If the DL's are labeled take pictures with the names before digging. I can't imagine at least a few will get mixed up.
I didn't have quite that many, but it was quite a few. Here's how I did it.
I brought them all home in my van on a tarp. Unloaded them under trees for shade and packed them in really close together to help keep them from drying out and to shade eachother. Then I just ran the automatic sprinkler over head to water them. When I got ready to plant, I used a shovel/knife to cut off a 4-5 fan chunk. That way I didn't have to dig a huge hole. (Don't divide until ready to plant, small chunks dry out faster) Then you can either give the rest away on craigs list or take the easy way and toss all of what's left on the compost pile.
(1) Just what is a "clump"? One poster on this or some other forum essentially defined a clump as anything larger than four fans. Four fans is a lot easier to handle than, say, 24 fans. Get a handle on what your benefactor means by a "clump" and size the project before you commit.
(2) A question asked but not answered: Over what time frame would you have to remove the plants?
(3) Regardless of the time frame, don't even think about digging individual holes. Dig a space large enough to hold all the plants, to the depth you want (maybe a foot but could be less). Prepare the fill dirt beforehand (see (4) below). As the plants arrive, place them in the prepared space and back fill appropriately.
(4) Assuming you will want to amend the planting soil, rent or borrow a mortar mixer. Even with my tiny projects, I have often wished to have one to ease the burden of properly mixing dirt and compost.
(5) If the space needed is to large for shovels, fine someone with a Bobcat who could scoop out the dirt for you.
Also if you pack them in tight to eachother under some trees and water them w a sprinkler, they can stay that way for WEEKS and do fine. Probably even a 2or 3 months honestly. The outer ones will die off most likely, but in a large clump those in the inside will thrive until you are ready to wack them out and plant.
Name: Teresa Felty Barrow South central KY (Zone 6b) SONGBIRD GARDENS
This year I had help with from my son. We moved almost 35 clumps to the field. It is a job, thankfully he dug the holes! I later bought a 12 more that I planted myself. It is a lot of hot work. Good luck!
