Moving house, moving your plants

One week ahead

• Lift any plants that you haven't had a chance to pot up. In autumn and winter, cut back the old stems of herbaceous plants first.
• In cold weather, use fleece or an old bed sheet to give all your prepared and potted up hardy plants extra insulation.
• During winter, put tender plants in a greenhouse, conservatory or shed to protect them from frost.
• When frost is forecast, protect your pots in polythene bubblewrap to insulate the plant roots.
• In hot weather, put prepared plants in a sheltered spot, out of direct sun, so they don't dry out.
• Group together potted plants to make watering easier - in summer you should be watering every day.
• When it's hot, spray plants with water so they don't wilt.

On the day

• Discuss with the removal company how best to move your plants and point out to them which are the most valuable and need special care. If you're going to move them yourself, plan well and take care lifting heavy pots. If necessary, buy a trolley.
• In cold weather, keep seedlings, cuttings and small or tender plants in a well-lit, frost-free greenhouse, shed or conservatory until it's time to move them. Put them where they won't be forgotten and keep the compost moist.
• Wrap the roots of lifted plants (both potted and bare-root) in plastic bubblewrap or hessian to protect them if conditions are frosty.
• If it's hot, spray plants with water so they don't wilt, and cover them with fleece to prevent leaf scorch.
• On arrival at their new home, find a prominent place for any seeds you have brought with you, so that they don't get lost or thrown away during the unpacking.
• Group any potted plants together in a sheltered part of the new garden to ease watering.

The day after

• Water all your plants thoroughly.
• Plant any bare-root plants in the ground (even temporarily), but if the soil is frozen, making planting impossible, keep the plants wrapped to stop their roots drying out.

The following weeks

• Keep all the plants well watered.
• Check over your plants and discard or compost any that have been badly damaged in transit.
• Find new homes for all your plants as quickly as possible.
• Make sure you plant them at the same level they were growing in your previous garden.
• Add a general-purpose fertilizer when planting, and improve poor soil with bagged or garden compost.

How to move your plants

Woody exotic: Tree fern

1. Tie up the fronds to protect the crown and trim each one by half if necessary. Dig around the base at least 15cm from the trunk.	2. Lift the plant and pot it up into multi-purpose compost or place the roots in an old compost bag to stop them drying out.