First Transplants

Our recent weather has kept us inside but the forecast of an afternoon high of 55 degrees drew us outside.  We found the ground free of frost but tight fitting gardening gloves resulted in cold hands despite the early temperature of 44 degrees.  Moving plants was our plan and moving plants was what we did.  This picture shows all of the new plants in the ground and watered.

Shooting star was the plant we intended to move but a Columbine was growing right next to it.  Not certain that March is the best time to move plants, we decided to avoid possible injury by removing the interloper.  It is possible that different plants growing close together might create a more natural appearance.  Columbine has a long tap root while the Shooting star grows from a dense near the surface root mass.  We will watch to see how our actions today work out. 

A huge pile of plastic bags filled with leaves are close by the planting area.  They certainly do not present a natural look but their contents are a vital part of our attempts to create natural woodland soil.  The property owner that bagged these leaves two or three years ago used his lawn mower to gather up the leaves.  Usually we chop them again with out push mower but it is a little early to drag out the mower so these were spread as they were.  Sharp eyes will find several spots of green showing just where the new transplants were placed.

This shows the final state of this wild ground today.  The clumps of moss were moved here last year.  The two groups of Snow drops were transplanted just recently but not today.  The Shooting stars and Columbines are between the Sumac trunks and the Snow drops.  The chopped leaves will both protect the new transplants and create a woodland floor appearance.  As they rot down, more natural soil will be formed.

That white rock marking the end of Moss Island deserves mention.  It is likely limestone and that means it is not native here.  Our bedrock is shale but the glaciers moved great quantities of broken stone here.  Limestone bedrock occurs to our north so this chunk might be native to Syracuse.  It was found on our land likely close to the spot where the retreating ice dropped it.