Moving in the middle of repotting season

[Tums]

Hi folks, I just got an offer accepted on a house (very exciting!) and the closing date is April 21st. I have a bunch of pre-bonsai/nursery stock, mostly deciduous, and I'm worried about repotting/doing root work on them shortly before moving, if I even have the time. Let's say I don't get around to it before May and the trees have started leafing out. Since I'm still growing them on, should I:

• Repot and do "light" root work like removing circling roots
• Slip pot
• Try and keep them going in their nursery pots for another year
• Just go for it

I was also thinking about doing pruning this month since it seems like the hard frosts will be over soon. There shouldn't be a problem doing top and bottom work separately?
Location should be in my profile but it's greater Boston, zone 6a.

Thanks,
Tom

 

[Forrestford]

Hey Tums, i'm in the same boat as you. Im moving from VA to CT in a few weeks. I still have lots to do as well. I am voting for Just go for it. Get into GO mode and get it all done. Luckily for me buds are pushing here in VA and when I finally get to CT ill be ahead of the growing season. Can't wait for New England fall colors!

 

[LittleDingus]

I'm looking at this scenario possibly next year.

One thing to consider is freshly potted trees are less secure in their pots than established ones. Depending on how far of a move and the mechanics of how the move might happen, I'd error on the side of skipping a year myself. Many of us repot more frequently than is necessary anyway.

 

[Tums]

It's just about 30 minutes drive away but that's what I was worried about - plants getting jostled just as they were recovering from the first round. I'm pretty paranoid about movers touching everything so I was thinking about renting a truck and handling it myself.

 

[LittleDingus]

My biggest worry would be a pot tips and dumps all the fresh soil and the roots dry up

I've got trees that aren't root bound (could easily go another year) that I can turn upside down and barely lose any soil. Those I wouldn't think twice about moving because if the do tip, they should still be fine.

I'm in a less stressful situation than you in that we think we'll move next year. I'm adjusting this year's reports to try and arrange not having to repot at all next year so hopefully everything is more mechanically stable. We're looking at a potential 8 hour drive...

 

[Slippery Pete]

Do you know these trees well? How they respond in your climate, what their specific needs are and how they look and grow when they are very healthy? Seems like this is an excellent chance to take a season to study what that looks like, or at least, have better chances of studying. Doing a significant root pruning would add another variable into the mix, if it turns out later in the summer, after having hauled these over to a new microclimate, you are wondering, "why isn't my tree thriving?"

I come from a perspective of, well, I want to create wonderful, moving bonsai someday. And in order to do that, I need to be able to understand what makes these trees thrive, how they work physiologically and such.

If anything, I would slip pot before bud break and leave it at that. Otherwise, I'd leave them be and try to wrap my head around the specifics of each tree. Take it all with a grain of salt though because I'm just a stupid plumber

 

[Tums]

Do you know these trees well? How they respond in your climate, what their specific needs are and how they look and grow when they are very healthy? Seems like this is an excellent chance to take a season to study what that looks like, or at least, have better chances of studying. Doing a significant root pruning would add another variable into the mix, if it turns out later in the summer, after having hauled these over to a new microclimate, you are wondering, "why isn't my tree thriving?"

I come from a perspective of, well, I want to create wonderful, moving bonsai someday. And in order to do that, I need to be able to understand what makes these trees thrive, how they work physiologically and such.

If anything, I would slip pot before bud break and leave it at that. Otherwise, I'd leave them be and try to wrap my head around the specifics of each tree. Take it all with a grain of salt though because I'm just a stupid plumber

Nope! Only got into gardening two years ago, and only moved to an apartment with a yard this past year. I'm just happy I was able to keep most things alive and growing through the cold spring, hot dry summer combo we got last year. I'll probably be conservative this year then. Some trees like my red maple are desperately rootbound but that can probably handle a slip pot without any trouble.

 

[Paradox]

If they are all fairly small/young trees and they arent pot bound, Id leave them in the pots for another year and repot them next year.

Repotting after they start leafing out could be a death sentence because the roots will be compromised by the repot and the leaves will demand more water from the roots which cant deliver it because they are compromised.

If you absolutely MUST repot a tree as a last resort Id do a slip pot ASAP after you move with minimal disturbance to the roots.

 

[leatherback]

freshly potted trees are less secure in their pots than established ones.

This is an important point. Especially since repotted trees will be establishing themselves by mid-april. I try and not move trees around (Say to my bonsai school) after repotting untill mid-spring. Of course, well developed trees or trees that can otherwise be tied in the pot well should not be a concern. (We right now have a spring stom passing over. I have placed tall recently repotted trees in the shed to reduce the jostling on the roots)

I would not repot a tree between leaf-out and late spring. That is the core growing period for the tree. In that case best to wait a year.

You know your trees best. What level of development, and how urgent is the repot?

 

[luvinthemountains]

I am facing this choice myself this spring. If @leatherback is correct, then repotting in March and moving in June may be okay. Sooner, and I'd want to be more careful. Unfortunately, the job search is more likely to dictate timing than anything else for me.

One idea I though of - screw tie downs to a piece of plywood with several trees on it to prevent tipping. And of course, put the trees in the car, which will have both better suspension and better ventilation than the truck.

 

[leatherback]

Trees should not be able to tip over. Normally you would tie the plants into the pots to a point that there is no problem.. But if the rootball is not well-established, the trees might still wobble a little. (I often loop a wire through the lowest fork and around the pot, and tied the tree down like that if the roots are not sufficient).

I think it all depends on how well tied in the trees are, who is driving, and how well you can take care moving things in and out of a trunk. I have my bonsai school at 125km (1:20h drive by freeway) and 2 clubs each at 45 mins by local roads. I feel more compfortable bringing plants that are not well-rooted to the school than to the clubs; Once on the freeway it is smooth driving, where local roads are an everlasting brakcing, pulling up, curves.

 

[luvinthemountains]

Trees should not be able to tip over.

I was more thinking about pots rolling over and exposing roots.

 

[leatherback]

I was more thinking about pots rolling over and exposing roots.

There was a thread on here some time ago. Simple solution: Very tall trees or trees prone to rolling over: Put them in moving boxes.

 

[luvinthemountains]

There was a thread on here some time ago. Simple solution: Very tall trees or trees prone to rolling over: Put them in moving boxes.

No, that makes too much sense. I like my overly-complicated, labor-intensive method better. Why do some people hate fun?

I may need some sleep.

 

[Tums]

This is an important point. Especially since repotted trees will be establishing themselves by mid-april. I try and not move trees around (Say to my bonsai school) after repotting untill mid-spring. Of course, well developed trees or trees that can otherwise be tied in the pot well should not be a concern. (We right now have a spring stom passing over. I have placed tall recently repotted trees in the shed to reduce the jostling on the roots)

I would not repot a tree between leaf-out and late spring. That is the core growing period for the tree. In that case best to wait a year.

You know your trees best. What level of development, and how urgent is the repot?

It's mostly nursery stock or plants in large pots. Some of them can probably wait but others can slide out of the pot with totally intact rootballs. My red maple shot up to 5 feet tall last year and constantly falls over because of its comically undersized 2 gallon pot. Since most gardening websites say you can transplant container-grown plants throughout the season, I'm hoping I should be ok to gently repot as long as I leave the majority of the rootball untouched this year.

As for my driving ability, my track record moving plants around is not the best, so this I think it's safer to do any work after the move.

 

[Tums]

The closing date ended up being moved back, so now we won't be moving until June. I think this is enough growing time to repot normally but I'll be sure to secure all the trees to their pots.

 

[sorce]

Welcome to Crazy!

At least there will be no Indigestion!

Wait on all accounts possible.

They say one insult per year, a move has potential, with a flat tire, drunk driving arrest, etc etc, to be many insults.

I'd want to go into that as healthy as possible.

Sorce

 

[Cadillactaste]

It's mostly nursery stock or plants in large pots. Some of them can probably wait but others can slide out of the pot with totally intact rootballs. My red maple shot up to 5 feet tall last year and constantly falls over because of its comically undersized 2 gallon pot. Since most gardening websites say you can transplant container-grown plants throughout the season, I'm hoping I should be ok to gently repot as long as I leave the majority of the rootball untouched this year.

As for my driving ability, my track record moving plants around is not the best, so this I think it's safer to do any work after the move.

Landacape planting is a different can of worms than what bonsai repotting is. Root work, change of substrate. Lots of factors. Its why bonsai has it's own set of rules for repotting times.

 

[leatherback]

The closing date ended up being moved back, so now we won't be moving until June. I think this is enough growing time to repot normally but I'll be sure to secure all the trees to their pots.

i would agree