Rosemary, which is an aromatic plant widely used and cultivated in home gardens. This means that many people need to know their requirements, care and maintenance tasks. Among these tasks is transplantation. Many people wonder how rosemary transplant in different ways.
For this reason, we are going to dedicate this article to explaining how to transplant rosemary, what are its characteristics and the steps to follow.
Contents
main Features
Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is a dense, aromatic woody plant that is relatively easy to grow and ideal for any garden or vegetable patch. It can be annual (lasting only one year) or perennial (lasting 3 years or more).
It has white, purple or blue flowers and fragrant, leathery leaves that look like pine needles. It is part of the Lamiaceae family which includes many other plants (basil, lavender, sage). Rosemary is a plant that attracts bees because they love its pollen.
How to transplant rosemary
Planting rosemary can be started from seeds or cuttings. In general, the use of seeds is difficult for beginners and only worthwhile for large-scale use. It is best grown from cuttings rather than seeds, but you can also buy seedlings if you don’t want to propagate them from cuttings.
Although seeds are readily available and inexpensive, only 15% of them germinate correctly. The steps for transplanting rosemary are very simple:
- cut about 10cm (4 inches) to extend them.
- After cutting, remove the leaves at the bottom of the cut (about 2.5 cm or 1 inch from the end of the stem). This part of the plant will be introduced into the ground.
- Place each cut in a small jar with two-thirds coarse sand and one-third peat.
- Place the pot in a sunny place, but not in direct sunlight.
- Water the cutting regularly and keep it in a warm place until it takes root, which takes about 3 weeks.
- To help cuttings germinate, the whole flowerpot can be put in a bag with a few holes at the top. This will regulate the temperature and keep the cutting environment moist and warm.
- Dip the tips of the cuttings powdered rosemary rooting hormones to accelerate growth.
How to transplant rosemary in different ways
From pot to pot
Doing this transplant once a year is enough, always in the spring if possible, after the risk of frost has passed if it is cold. If you want your rosemary to keep growing, it is useful to take advantage of this annual transplanting to slightly increase the size of the pot and provide a new substrate for a very mature organic fertilizer.
On the other hand, if you want it to keep its size, you can transplant it in the same pot or a similar one, but take a little substrate from the root ball, cut the roots without soil. Then add substrate again. It can also be used for light pruning so that the crown pruning compensates for the root pruning.
From the pot to the ground
This transplant should be done when you want to plant rosemary in pots to continue growing in orchard or garden soil. It is also advisable to do it in the spring, once the frosts have passed but before it gets too hot, especially if it is in the shade and will be in full sun. If the pot is already outside and in an exposed area, it can be transplanted almost any time of the year because the plant has adapted to these conditions.
You will have to dig a big hole, at least 10 cm higher and wider than the pot, but more if you can. If the soil is very sticky, or is always very wet, or if the soil is sunken, rosemary should be planted at a natural or artificial height to prevent its roots from rotting due to excess moisture.
When you take the rosemary out of the pot, look at what the root ball looks like. If the surface has many roots and they have become entangled, it is better to loosen them before replanting. This makes it easier and faster to replant it.
From soil to pot
Finally, you may need to pull the rosemary out of the ground and move it to a pot because it can’t be left in place, or because you want it in a container to give it more room to grow, or something like that. If this is your case, you must do a circle about 50cm from the stem of the rosemary and start digging a narrow and deep trench as if you want to dig something that can be broken as if you touch it.
When the trench is at least 30 cm deep, try to lift it with a strong, thin tool, trying to lift the island of soil that remains around the rosemary. Once the root ball is detached, take it out and condition it to transfer it to the container.
Using a light substrate and some very mature organic fertilizer, plant rosemary in a pot like any other plant, but make sure the crown is balanced with the volume of the root. Don’t do it in the summer, better in the spring, so the rosemary will grow quickly and replace lost roots and pruned branches if any.
A few things to know about transplanting rosemary
Like many other aromatic plants, rosemary is not a high maintenance plant. It grows in all types of soil, preferably dry, dry, slightly sandy and permeable soils, ideal for poor soils. It grows on coasts and low mountains.
The best time to grow it is in late spring, but in warm climates it can also be done in early fall. Rosemary plants can be harvested several times in a season, but must be allowed to regenerate between harvests. Rosemary rarely needs fertilizer. However, if growth is slow or plants appear dwarfed or yellowed, an all-purpose fertilizer should be applied in the spring before new growth appears. Avoid applying fertilizer directly to the plant as it will burn.
Rosemary is not difficult to water. Ideally, water every 1 or 2 weeks, depending on plant size and climatic conditions. In rainy regions or humid climates, plants should not be watered, only in times of drought. Between each watering, it is advisable to let the rosemary plants dry out.
Hopefully with this information you can learn more about how to transplant rosemary.