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closeSaturday, Sep. 19, 2009
Fall the time to divide perennials
By Marianne C. Ophardt, Special to the Herald
KENNEWICK -- Fall is arriving next week and there's so much to do in the garden.
I'm making a list so I don't forget anything.
On the top of that list is the division of some of my perennial flowers and ornamental grasses. I can't believe how much they've grown in just two years. They've outgrown their allotted spaces and are crowding other plants.
If your perennials are growing together, dying out in the centers, or producing fewer and fewer flowers each year, they should be divided.
After the weather cools a bit in the fall and while the soil still is warm is the best time of year to divide spring flowering perennials.
While spring generally is considered the best time to divide fall blooming perennials, most also can be divided in the fall if needed.
The first thing to do when dividing a perennial plant is to water the soil around the roots. This makes digging easier. It's also a good idea to decide if you're going to replant the "divisions" in your garden or share them with your gardening friends. If you choose to replant them in your garden, you'll want to prepare the planting areas before dividing the old "mother" plants.
To dig up the plant, use a sharp spading shovel to sever the roots around the circumference of the plant's dripline. Then lift it out of the soil with a garden fork or shovel. If the crown and roots form a dense clump, you can use the spading shovel or a garden knife to divide the plant into two or more pieces.
A saw may be needed to divide the tougher, woody perennial clumps. Dead or unproductive parts of an older clump should be removed and discarded.
Perennials with more of a spreading or "running" root system usually are easier to divide. Simply dig them up and break them into smaller pieces, making sure each section contains some buds or shoots. When you replant a division, make sure it's situated at the same level in the soil that it had been growing before.
Once planted, water the divisions thoroughly to settle the soil around the roots and continue to water to keep the soil moist through the warm days of fall.
Popular perennials that do well with fall division are daylily, bearded iris, hosta, black-eyed Susan, hummingbird mint, coneflower, yarrow, poppy, bee balm and yarrow.
I haven't had a chance to talk about dividing ornamental grasses. The process is similar, but can be much a more difficult and laborious chore, especially with some of the big grasses. I know gardeners who use a chain saw to divide tough pampas grass clumps.
If you'd like to learn more about dividing perennials and ornamental grasses, planting spring flowering bulbs, preparing roses for winter, composting with worms, preparing water garden plants for winter, and making stepping stones, register to attend the second annual Fall Garden Fest, sponsored by the WSU Extension and the WSU Master Gardeners on Oct. 3.
The morning sessions will be indoors and the afternoon classes will be outside in the Master Gardener Demonstration Garden. I'll be there there talking about fall lawn care.
The cost of the full day of classes is $20 and you can get information on how to register by contacting the Extension office at 735-3551 or going online at http:// benton-franklin.wsu.edu/garden/events.htm to print a registration brochure.
* Marianne C. Ophardt is a horticulturist for the Washington State University Benton County Extension Office.
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