Last weekend, I decided to transplant one of our Sphaeralcea bushes from the back garden to the front. We had put it quite close to a path at the back and it was beginning to block the path physically as well as obscuring the view down the path and further into the garden. It wasn’t a massive bush but must have been approaching 4′ high. The problem with transplanting a relatively mature specimen is that you do a lot of damage to the roots unless you lift a lot of earth with it and, because of the other plants that were growing around it, I had to take it almost bare-rooted.

After putting it in the ground at the front, I pruned the top a long way back. The plant needs some leaves to generate energy from the sun but too much vegetation places a double strain on the internal transport system. Water and nutrients have further to travel from the roots and there is much more surface area to loose that water from. I also watered in well and gave it a top up on Sunday.

However, given this week’s weather, I think watering won’t be a problem any more. We’re getting plenty from the sky! It is still going be a bit touch and go as to whether it makes it – I wouldn’t take the risk if it was our only specimen of the plant but it was in the wrong place and we’ve got some other bushes and also some established cuttings. It has a decent chance though and it certainly looks like it won’t fail for lack of water.