Native Plants
![](../_images/smarty_plants.gif)
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
![](../_images/mr_smarty_plants_logo_web_200w.jpg)
rate this answer
![](../_images/star_43.gif)
Wednesday - July 01, 2009
From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Compost and Mulch, Transplants, Grasses or Grass-like
Title: Planting from pots in summer in Austin
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
It's the last week in June and temperatures are going to be at 100 or more all week. I've some plants that I'm wondering about transplanting to an exposed site in this heat: muhlenbergeria lindheimeriana (one gallon)and cassia lindheimeriana (4 in"), and several 4" pots of Mexican wire grass. Should I wait for a break (back down into the 90s?)or a few cloudy days? Once they have a couple days break, they will still have to contend with months more of sun, heat and water from the hose. I remembering reading or hearing that, beyond the problems of heat stress, too much moisture in this heat can be detrimental to unestablished plants that normally take a lot of heat in dry weather. In order to establish these plants, I'll be watering in the evenings. Do I have any options, or do I wait until mid September?ANSWER:
We feel your pain, we garden in Austin, too. Our first impulse was to say: One word - WAIT! Then, we looked at your question more closely and realized you were not talking about moving plants from one garden spot (in the dirt) to another; you had the plants still in (probably) black plastic nursery containers. We hope you are keeping them in shaded conditions and watering regularly because, if not, the roots are probably already fried. Our suggestion is that you slather some mosquito repellant on yourself and plant those in the evening, after the sun has gone down. Make sure the soil is already prepared for good drainage and easy adaptation by the roots. Working some compost into the soil before you ever put the plant in there is a very good idea. This will help with drainage, make trace elements available to the plant roots and, in general, be gentle with those roots. On your evening planting expedition, get the plants into the soil as quickly as possible, and then water very gently by sticking a hose deep down in that nice compost and letting it dribble very slowly. If there is still daylight, or the next morning, cover the root areas with a good quality shredded hardwood mulch. This will keep the sun off those baby roots, cool the ground, and help to hold in moisture. Continue to water very gently (no overhead) every other morning or so (to help prevent mildew) and don't fertilize. Any plant being transplanted right now is a plant in stress, and stressed plants don't need fertilizer.
More Transplants Questions
Division of impatiens grown in a pot
December 08, 2007 - I have an impatient and it is growing out of the pot. I was wondering if it were possible to divide it somehow and have two medium size plants.
view the full question and answer
Post-bloom period care for Pink evening primrose
June 28, 2011 - Hello,
I live in Denton, TX. I introduced pink evening primrose as a ground cover to a xeriscaped section of my property a few years ago. I have pretty much left it alone and let it do its thing an...
view the full question and answer
My newly planted Redbuds are not doing well.
June 24, 2009 - I ordered and received 2 Red Bud trees from one of the popular ordering houses. They explained that they were dormant and not dead, and gave us instructions on how to plant them, which we followed. Th...
view the full question and answer
Browning leaves on recently planted chinkapin oak in Rockwall TX
June 09, 2010 - I just planted a chinkapin oak that is about 1 1\2 inches thick last week and now some of the leaves are turning brown. Does that mean its dying? Do you have any tips that I could use to protect it?
view the full question and answer
Tree transplants having problems in Manchaca TX
April 03, 2010 - I have recently transplanted a Mexican Buckeye, Chinquapin oak, and Sandpaper tree that I have been raising inside since they were seedlings. They have now developed a browning of the tips of their l...
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |