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Set Your Containers Free in September

September is usually still a relatively warm month and the soil is still moist, so it’s a good time to buy or transplant container-grown plants into a more permanent home in your Parkville, Missouri yard. Getting the container plants grounded in September gives them a good chance to get established before the cold winds of late fall and winter set in. The establishment of roots now helps set your plants up to thrive in the spring as well. In addition to giving the plant a healthy start the cooler, moister weather makes maintenance easier too; you don’t need to be quite so vigilant about watering, hence saving you time and money.

Make the transition by digging a hole twice the width of the shrub’s root ball. Set it into the hole so that it is at the same height as it was in the container. Fill around your shrub with your hands and then using your heel firm up the top into a saucer-like depression so that water will collect there more easily.

Finally, trim away any dead or damaged stems, refocusing the plant’s energy on the healthy growth. Take a good look at the plant and prune off any stems that are inward-facing or stems that cross over the center of the plant, leaving healthy, outward-facing stems. You may be planting in moist soil, but you do want to add water and put a protective layer of mulch on top.

If the transition from container to ground seems a bit overwhelming, don’t fret. Give the landscape professionals at R&S Lawn Service a call today to set up a consultation. They can help you design the space your former container-bound plants will make their permanent home and help you enhance your existing landscape. Give them a call today.