Friendship Gardening Rocks!

[AngelaVA]

The last two summers I have been introduced to "friendship gardening" by some friends and neighbors. Basically, you dig up and split off parts of well-established perennials and give them away to friends and neighbors. I have gotten tons of lillies and hostas and some other things I can't remember names of right now :lol My current favorite is these butterfly bushes I just got which I planted this week and is attracting butterflies already. I have tons of plants in my yard and lots of free advice and all I have had to buy is topsoil and mulch. What a blessing! Typically, the plants don't do super well the first year, but they establish roots and come back the next spring (mine all did), then you fertilize them (and continue to water) the second year and by the third year they should be ready to be split off into some friendship plants for others. I know a lot of us are living frugally and what a fun way to share a hobby!

[canadiyank]

Yes, isn't this fantastic!? At our last house a friend shared several of her perennials and it was sooooo fun and very generous of her. Here I'm still getting things established so I've nothing to share, but I look forward to it. :yes

[CJ]

a few years ago DH landscaped the front of our house with lots of different perenials. Several of them need to be split now. A couple people have asked for some. When is the best time to split them? Now they are all blooming.

[canadiyank]

I read a thing that said the farthest time from them blooming is the best time to divide...so for some that will be spring, and for others, fall.

I divide spring-blooming bulbs after their foliage has died back. Same with lilies...but that's much later in the season. Mums, which bloom in the fall, are divided in the spring just after their shoots pop up.

What I usually do is google the variety and "dividing"...so "dividing daffodils," etc, and that comes up with helpful information.

HTH!

[AngelaVA]

Yes, from what I have heard it is better not to split them while they are blooming as it will make your flowers kind of weepy and shorten their blooming, I would say at this point it would be better to wait until they are done blooming.

[JoyGal]

Wow, I really like this idea a lot! Thanks for sharing your experience with it. Hope I get a chance to try this out sometime :rockon

[CJ]

I read a thing that said the farthest time from them blooming is the best time to divide...so for some that will be spring, and for others, fall.

I divide spring-blooming bulbs after their foliage has died back. Same with lilies...but that's much later in the season. Mums, which bloom in the fall, are divided in the spring just after their shoots pop up.

What I usually do is google the variety and "dividing"...so "dividing daffodils," etc, and that comes up with helpful information.

HTH!


thanks! I'll pass this info onto DH!