Transplanting
Read about Transplanting in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture
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Transplanting is a general term to designate the removal of living plants whereby they may become established in new quarters. Transplanting may be performed when the plant is in a dormant condition, as in winter, or when it is still actively growing. Small herbaceous plants are usually the only ones that are transplanted when in a growing condition, and this only when the plants are living under special garden conditions where they may have the best of attention as to watering and shading. Considered from the standpoint of the plant, transplanting is always a violent operation, for it destroys a considerable part of the root-system, loosens the plant's attachment to the soil, and arrests for the time being a large part of its progressive vital activities. To overcome these dangers, the earth into which the plant is set should be well prepared and moist, so that the plant may quickly reestablish itself; part of the top usually should be removed to lessen transpiration, and with succulent and growing plants some shade should be provided for a time. The deeper and finer the soil, and the greater the quantity of moisture it holds, the more successful the transplanting operation will be, other things being equal. The operation is also more successful in humid regions, as in the Atlantic states, than it is in dry regions, as on the plains and westward. In the more arid parts of the country transplanting is performed as little as possible, whereas in the eastern part great quantities of annual and other garden plants are transferred from seed-beds to the open ground. The successful transplanting of any plant depends in part on the condition of the plant itself. The younger the plant, as a rule, the better it withstands the operation. Herbaceous or growing plants that are relatively short and stocky and compact, transplant better than those that are long, "leggy," and weak. The stocky plants are better able to withstand the vicissitudes of inclement weather when they are transferred from a protected place to the open air, and they probably also have more recuperative power to make new roots and to attach themselves again to the earth. Many plants may be "hardened off" or gradually inured to sun and cold before they are transplanted. The more frequently a given plant is transplanted the more readily it endures the removal. The root-system becomes close and compact and there is relatively less injury to the roots at each subsequent removal, providing a long interval does not take place between the operations. The success of transplanting also depends to some extent on the weather at the time the removal is performed. If cool, cloudy, and damp weather follows the transplanting, the plants are much more likely to live. Plants usually establish themselves more quickly in freshly turned soil, because it contains a relatively large amount of moisture. To bring the earth into contact with the roots, it should be firmed closely about the plants. This packing of the soil tends to bring the subterranean moisture upward where it may supply the roots; it also tends to increase evaporation from the surface of the soil and thereby to waste the water, although much of the moisture is utilized by the plant as it passes upward. To prevent the escape of moisture from the surface of the soil, it is customary to cover the ground with a mulch, from 1 to 3 inches in depth, of litter, sawdust, leaves, or coarse manure. When practicable the water may be saved by keeping the surface well tilled, thereby providing a mulch of earth. See Tillage. In dry weather it may be advisable to water newly set plants, particularly if they are green and growing fast, as tomatoes, cabbages, and other annuals. The watering may best be done at nightfall. The water should be applied in a hole or depression about the plant or at one side of it, rather than on the surface; and the following morning the loose fresh earth should be drawn over the roots in order to provide a surface mulch and to prevent the soil from packing. Of course, this particular pains cannot be taken in large field operations. All kinds of plants can be transplanted, but some of them remove with great difficulty. In these cases the special skill which is born of experience with these particular plants must be invoked for success. The difficulties are of various kinds. In some cases the difficulty may be a tap-root system, as in the case of the black walnut and the hickories. In these instances the plant may be prepared a year or two in advance by severing the tap-root some distance below the ground by means of a spade or other sharp instrument that is thrust underneath the crown. In other cases the difficulty is the inability of the plant to make new feeding roots quickly, as in some of the asiminas or papaws. Such plants often may be treated like the tap-rooted plants; that is, the long cord-like roots may be severed at some distance from the crown a year or two before the plants are to be removed. In other cases the inability to be transplanted is probably due to the excessive rate of transpiration from the foliage. In these cases cutting back the top rather severely and providing shade may contribute to success. In some cases the difficulties are so great as practically to prohibit transplanting. So-called transplanting machines have been perfected within the last few years for setting small herbaceous stuff, as cabbages, tobacco, and tomatoes. These are really vehicles, drawn by horses, that open a furrow and drop a small quantity of water when the plant is inserted in the furrow by the hands of an operator who rides on the machine. The plants, already prepared for setting, are carried in a tray or hopper, and the operator places these between guards which automatically measure the distance. These machines are particularly valuable in large areas where great quantities of plants are to be set, and also in hard and dry land where it is difficult to make the proper openings with the hand and also otherwise to supply the plant with sufficient water. For most small plants that are to be reset in small quantity, the dibber is a most useful implement to expedite the operation. (Fig. 3834.) Plants grown in pots and small shallow boxes transplant more readily than those raised in the open soil. Particularly is this true of pot-grown plants, for the bevel or slope of the pot allows the ball of earth to be "knocked out" readily. See Potting. Special transplanting-boxes are on the market, to be used instead of pots, for purposes of economy. These boxes are usually made of thin basket stuff and are thrown away when the plants are taken from them for transplanting. (Fig. 3833.) The seeds are sown directly in these boxes. Melons, cucumbers, and other plants that are difficult to transplant are often grown on pieces of inverted turf, taken from old pastures. In the case of large trees and shrubs, success often may be attained by transplanting in the winter, when a ball of frozen earth may be removed. It is usually better to give the transplanting of large trees into the hands of an expert than to attempt to perform it with unskilled help and inefficient appliances. Only a certain proportion of the efforts in transplanting very large trees are really successful. The trees may live for several years and yet never fully recover or make satisfactory subjects. The surest and best results are usually secured only when the trees are nursery-grown and have been transplanted two or three times within a few years of their final removal. There are some species that remove from the wild with relative ease when they are of large size, among which are elms, maples, pin oak, basswood; but the large number of species do not readily recuperate from the operation. See Arboriculture, Vol. I, page 362. It is sometimes said that a plant cannot recover from the transplanting operation, that the severing of the roots inflicts injuries that are not outgrown, and that a new type of root-system develops. These fears appear to be groundless. In many cases the plant does not regain itself, but these instances are probably due to lack of skill in the operation rather than to any inherent difficulty in the transplanting process itself. But even if the transplanting process were found to be theoretically injurious, nevertheless it must be employed in the practice of modern horticulture. CH
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References
- Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture, by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963
External links
- w:Transplanting. Some of the material on this page may be from Wikipedia, under the Creative Commons license.
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