Moving tree ferns

Hi, I have a couple of tree ferns that I would like to move in the autumn. I have heard they don't have many ground roots, so do you think it would be OK to move them? I don't want to harm them. Has anyone any experience of digging them up? They have trunks which are 3-4ft high and have been in place for about five years.
Carrie

 

You may well find they have more root than you were expecting
I have never tried to move one though .....

 

Hi Carrie, as Whis4ey says, be prepared for a lot more root than you would think. Despite common belief, they form a large mat (very difficult to dig through) of roots.
I had one in a large pot for only 7 months and was astounded at how potbound it was when I came to plant it.

Good luck, have a hot bath ready!

 

Hello Chrysocolla

I am not an expert gardener - perish the thought - but I am an expert mover. I have been moving plants around for more years than I can remember and I have a tried and tested formula.

For 3 days before I want to move something I water it copiously. Then, on moving day I dig a hole in the new site. Then I dig around the plant I am moving the same distance as the width - i.e. if the plant is a metre across I dig around it half a metre from the stem. It doesn't matter that you chop through roots as this is bound to happen. Dig down as far as you can until the plant rocks easily. Lift the plant out onto some sheeting and either drag it to its new position or carry it. Plop it into the new hole and water, water, water and firm in and keep it watered for a couple of weeks.

I have moved trees and bushes this way. Last winter I moved two trees which had to be pulled out with the car and a tow rope and they are alive and well as I write. I have moved shrubs as tall as me without any difficulty. If the plant is dormant then it should recover by the spring and survive.

The only thing I have noticed with the larger trees and shrubs is that if they have fruit - i.e. I moved a very large quince bush - they do not fruit for a year or so afterwards. I think the quince was recovering but it flowered and is growing away normally now and fruiting.

Last winter I moved an elderberry tree, a hazelnut tree and many large shrubs. This winter I am going to move a 12 foot tree which is embedded in rock - wish me luck.