Best time for fall collection in Ohio...

[Cadillactaste]

Hey...I posted on Facebook about collection of possible shrubs,trees, or vines if the base was interesting...if anyone wanted material removed from their property...it could be a win/win.

I had one person say they had vortex boxwood. In ground for several years. And one a lilac tree and possibly a few other shrubs. So...next week I go a looking.

 

[JudyB]

ummmm, - spring is the best time for fall collection in Ohio. Or more accurately -late winter/very early spring.

Fall is a particularly bad time to collect (especially if you don't have collection/aftercare experience) in harsh weather areas. Unless you have a really good handle on how to protect the tree, and how to care for it post collection.

Collecting is HARD. No sense in it if the plant will just die.

 

[Cadillactaste]

ummmm, - spring is the best time for fall collection in Ohio. Or more accurately -late winter/very early spring.

Fall is a particularly bad time to collect (especially if you don't have collection/aftercare experience) in harsh weather areas. Unless you have a really good handle on how to protect the tree, and how to care for it post collection.

Collecting is HARD. No sense in it if the plant will just die.

Thanks Judy for your honesty...okay...I have never done aftercare. So...I will have to explain it wouldn't be until spring. I have that enclosed gazebo to winter...but, not really ideal for aftercare of a stressed tree more or less. Thanks again...

 

[Alain]

Shoot! I live in Illinois and I was planning to collect also rather soon...So Spring will be the best time, too bad.
Otherwise: what's the best time for air layering in these kind of zones 5 countries?

 

[JudyB]

airlayering is best right around the time the first leaves harden off in late spring. Some have fine luck with it later, but if you do it too late to separate it and introduce it to a pot late in the season, then you'll need to worry about protecting the roots through the winter in a big way.

 

[Cadillactaste]

Ugh...the guy with the boxwoods...has dieback...and they are coming out if I collect or not. He plans on taking one out today. so I guess I have no option but to collect them now and hope for the best. Not as mature of shrubs as I once thought. 5-6 years old. So they should come out easy.

So I told him to put it in a bucket of water so it doesn't dry out. Was that wrong information?

 

[M. Frary]

First off how will he be taking it out of the ground? Since he doesn't care what happens with the plants I would think he wouldn't expend a lot of time or energy getting it out. I watched some guys jerking junipers out of the ground with a bobcat and a chain at McDonalds 2 weeks ago.
If you can dig them up yourself you know they will get the best possible care you can give them. If you go get the one in a bucket of water today sometime it should be fine. Maybe even tomorrow. Boxwoods are tough little buggers though so the abuse might not be enough yo kill them.

 

[Cadillactaste]

First off how will he be taking it out of the ground? Since he doesn't care what happens with the plants I would think he wouldn't expend a lot of time or energy getting it out. I watched some guys jerking junipers out of the ground with a bobcat and a chain at McDonalds 2 weeks ago.
If you can dig them up yourself you know they will get the best possible care you can give them. If you go get the one in a bucket of water today sometime it should be fine. Maybe even tomorrow. Boxwoods are tough little buggers though so the abuse might not be enough yo kill them.

He mentioned shovel to remove. Doesn't want to destroy his yard with tractor with the rain we've had. So we shall see.

 

[M. Frary]

Very good. I hope they turn out good for you. You'll have to post some pictures you know.

 

[dick benbow]

I think it fortunate, that the boxwoods are coming out so your forced to deal with the trials and tribulations of stabilizing them and then getting them thru winter.

All part of the learning curve.

I have to agree with that other Buckeye (judy) that fall is a little tougher time to get trees thru.
I always prefer spring so i can monitor the trees ability to compensate, whereas in winter, they're preparing to go dormant and you have no "feel" for how they are responding to the stress. Other than to discover them dead . many was the time, when they took the xtra effort to awaken in spring, it over taxed their reserves and it lead to their eventual demise.

back a few decades ago i was the voice of WLEC AM & FM in northwest ohio (sandusky)
proving you never know where an olde buckeye may turn up.

 

[Cadillactaste]

Thanks Dick...I guess he was planning on removal of the shrubs prior to seeing my post on Facebook. But...to have them just tossed...makes no sense. They are going to die anyways. So...if they die in my care I at least attempted to spare them that fate.

I guess I was thinking of transplanting. Where spring or fall is okay to uproot plants in the ground. But, am glad to hear that prior to yanking a possible older lilac. That would have crushed me.

 

[Alain]

Thanks Judy for the tips on air layering!

Boxwoods are indeed pretty strong buggers: I removed one from my yard a couple of weeks ago and potted it in a bonsai pot, that was my first attempt in the bonsai world and I assure you that I was everything but nice with the poor fellow. Didn't bother him more than that, he's growing leaves now and seem to enjoy his new environment pretty much.

Otherwise I have the same thinking than Darlene: my wife wants our yard to be clean-up in order to plant flowers next years so a bunch of our shrubs will go anyway and thus I plan to try to re-plant them in training pots, protect them the best as possible and hope for the best.
Always better than the dumpster!

 

[GrimLore]

In general boxwoods are very forgiving. Plant them in an oversize container and filtered sun until you see new growth then put them out in the sun. If you do it soon there is a good chance they will winter ok. I would suggest burying the pots in the ground this season with a burlap wrap.

Grimmy

 

[Cadillactaste]

In general boxwoods are very forgiving. Plant them in an oversize container and filtered sun until you see new growth then put them out in the sun. If you do it soon there is a good chance they will winter ok. I would suggest burying the pots in the ground this season with a burlap wrap.

Grimmy

He ended up not touching them yet. So that is good to know. Thanks Grimmy.