I haven't moved to zone 6 yet, but it appears I will be closing in Floyd somewhere around the 19th. I have so many more roses to take down to pot up and azaleas and rhododendrons too. The Slaughters' greenhouse banks their potted plants with sawdust so I ordered a load to be taken to the house. Then as I was reading 1001 garden secrets, the writer said that you could mix chicken manure with sawdust and they balance each other out making a fine mix. I thought I might add cow or horse manure since that area doesn't have chicken houses. Then I might add a load of topsoil so that next spring I can plant the roses in the very material used to insulate them. Is something wrong with this thinking?
What else should I do?
Hi Gloriag:
I'm a little confused. Are you moving here to this area and bringing your roses, etc. with you?
Chicken manure is a whole world away in nutrients from equine or bovine, so I'd be careful about substituting.
Candyce,
Yes, I am bringing a ton of plants: roses (30+,)azaleas (about 30,) clematis (14 or so,) huge clumps of LA and Japanese iris, a ton of daylilies, several large peonies, lots of columbine, Malvas,ferns, etc. It sounds like my yard is a beautiful garden, but many of these were just in pots.
I will call the local nursery to see about buying chicken manure and adding topsoil and maybe mulch and mixing it all together.
It does sound beautiful!
That's a good idea about calling a local nursery ~ especially since the Zones can differ by as little as just a few miles or a few feet in elevation. And that's not to mention the soil types and how different they can be from one acre to the next!!
Good luck with your move.
Gloria, good luck with your move. That's a lot of plants to care for. So you're going to keep them outside insulated with the mixture you mentioned? Sounds good to me. You'll have your work cut out for you come spring!
Now, there's an understatement if I ever read one!!!
Ah, but I plan to hire someone to help me. I am almost 66 and this is the place I hope to live out my life. I have always been ridiculously frugal, but now is the time to spend some money on things I love.
Of course, I am frugal now: winter sowing, making a cloning machine later, and thrift stores. I just purhased a very warm men's seude jacket, a wool sweater made in Scotland, and sheep seude boots with fleece inside, all for less than $19.00. I plan to check further on boots before I order some 70% off on the web.
A cloning machine? I need to clone myself some days.
Gloria - glad to hear you'll be taking your plants with you and even happier to know you can be thrilled not to ever have to move again. What did the nursery tell you about the mix you wanted to make with the manure/sawdust/topsoil mix?
Good luck with the move!
Pirl, Gayle, the owner, hired someone to bring it to the place. Apparently the nursery has two types: pure sawdust and sawdust mixed with manure. I think I may have the pure sawdust, but they both cost the same. I will order the mix when I get down there if that is the case.
I never realized how many plants I do have! It's as though I have been waiting to move all these years because so many are in holding pots. I still have about 6 more roses to dig, hundreds of daffodils of various kinds, and day lilies. I had hoped to landscape the place, but it appears I won't have room to do that. I am going to raise ornamental grasses over the winter and try to use them in various places. Also, I will probably have close to a hundred kinds of perennial seeds to winter sow. Moderation is a totally alien concept to me!
I just can't wait to get down there. I am taking four feral kittens which I have tamed (well, one has to come around a little more.) They follow me around like puppies. I have trained them to stay away from the street. I believe they will be very happy there. I just pray that I can live a good many more years to finally enjoy life!
Me, too! Good luck with the move, Gloria! Is it scheduled for next week?
No, I still don't have a closing date on that house. Also, I have to close on this house on the 26th. But I can use that time to my advantage (packing, etc.)
Just the thought of the packing would drain me.
When we moved to this house about three years ago, we began packing up the old house as soon as we decided that we needed a larger home. I think we just began by saying ... "Do we NEED this?" "Do we USE this?" and either gave away or tossed a lot of stuff.
When we moved into this house, we were up and running and having company just three days after the move. I know it was because we had packed the old house slowly and wisely. Now, I spend some time each month doing the same thing for this house. If we haven't used it in a year ... bye, bye!! We have lots less clutter and more space to be a family!!
We whittled five homes down to one - it's worth the work.
Yes. It certainly is well worth it. We still have a way to go, because we are a melded family. His stuff and her stuff. You know how it goes. What's challenging to me is that his taste just doesn't go with her taste, so decorating to suit all of us is quite a challenge! Not to mention that we need so many things for so many different age groups!