Transplanting Mint - moving house

[DC Sunshine]

Just about to move house in a couple of weeks to a much bigger (thank goodness - will be able to swing a cat at last!).

In the garden here I've got a lovely crop of mint at the moment and would like to take some with me to replant at new place. Is it as simple as digging some up, putting into potting mix and replanting once we get there? I know its a hardy plant - once you've got it you can't kill it if you want to....was just wondering if anyone else has had the same experience and had any tips?

Any replies appreciated

DC

[phatch]

I've transplanted lemon balm successfully. I just left it in the soil root ball and into a pot filled with extra dug soil from when I dug it up and it went just fine in to the new place. It needs a severe punishment now to bring it back in line.

Lemon Balm is a close mint relative so you shouldn't have a problem.

Phil

[Anneke]

You need an apocalyptic chemical spill to kill mint...

Funny thing about lemon balm. Mine grew legs and travelled from the front yard to the back yard.

[KYHeirloomer]

All of the mints can be readily started from slips. So that's the easiest way to move them.

Take a few cuttings and stand them in a glass of water. Within days they'll start developing roots. At that point you can transplant them to pots for the actual move.

Mellisa (Lemon Balm) is a mint, btw.

FWIW, you can always tell members of the mint family because the stems are square, rather than round. It's a sure-fire give-away.

[DC Sunshine]

Anneke -hehehehe - you kill me and I agree.

Ok sounds like the mint is going with us...YIPPEE!!!

Got a really big crop so I might grab some leaves and freeze them whole too until it gets going at the new house.

Thanks all

P.S. KYH - you got me wondering about the square stem - just looked - yep! it sure is. Never looked that close before....

[DC Sunshine]

Okie dokie - we are finally settled in more or less, and so is the mint.

What I ended up doing was cutting (yeah ok I was in a hurry and just ripped them off) some thick stems of mint, and chucking them in a jar with some water. Kept the water up to them since beginning of December, and they've grown a good healthy set of roots and even some new shoots out from just above the roots.

I've just put them into a pot with potting mix, liberally soaked it, and will see how they go.

Tried the same with Lavender, but they just fizzled and died. Ah well.

Will update in couple of weeks....

[jigz369]

IMHO, put your mint in pots and sink the pot in the ground. Mint (and all related plants) is so invasive that I refuse to put it in the ground in my garden. It does well in pots and never invades to take over my herb garden.
Just my opinion though....

[DC Sunshine]

Jigz, but its a really REALLY big pot -I ain't got the energy to dig that in But yes I agree, Mint etc can take over a whole neighbourhood - its a bit like triffids...
(I really hope you've seen the movie or that will make no sense at all...)

[FR33_MASON]

You got it.

A nice clump should do and as a matter of fact most perennial herbs seem to do better if the clump is divided every 2 to three years. It seems to prevent a 'bald spot from forming in the middle of the clump. being that it is the growing season in Au. I would suggest to use a starter solution which helps prevent transplant shock. However, a large enough clump should compensate for any die off experienced. Just try and keep it on the cooler side during transport. A damp burlap sack around the root ball has worked for me even during the hottest periods of summer here in Alberta Canada.

[elizabethbryce@]

Originally Posted by KYHeirloomer

All of the mints can be readily started from slips. So that's the easiest way to move them.

Take a few cuttings and stand them in a glass of water. Within days they'll start developing roots. At that point you can transplant them to pots for the actual move.

Mellisa (Lemon Balm) is a mint, btw.

FWIW, you can always tell members of the mint family because the stems are square, rather than round. It's a sure-fire give-away.

I was looking around for some threads and I found this interesting one that I am interested in...mints. I love mints and I tried to grow them here in Missouri and somehow I lost them to weeds (?)

Anyway, the advice here maybe useful to me and I would like to try it. In the meantime, I would like to thank KY...for this advice and ask this group that had grown mint before -- can mint be "weatherized" (or "winterized")? Does anyone knows?

Thanks....
elizabeth

[KYHeirloomer]

Not quite sure what you mean by weatherized. Most mints are incredibly hardy. Here in Kentucky they often don't even die back over winter. And when they do, they bounce right back in the spring.

So just leave them in the ground, and they'll winter over just fine.

If you want some fresh over the winter, then pot a plant and bring it indoors. And east-facing window should provide enough light. If not, a flurescent bulb should do just fine.

[elizabethbryce@]

Originally Posted by KYHeirloomer

Not quite sure what you mean by weatherized. Most mints are incredibly hardy. Here in Kentucky they often don't even die back over winter. And when they do, they bounce right back in the spring.

So just leave them in the ground, and they'll winter over just fine.

If you want some fresh over the winter, then pot a plant and bring it indoors. And east-facing window should provide enough light. If not, a flurescent bulb should do just fine.

I left mine in the ground last time and I can't find it now...of all the herbs I left on the ground, only sage and dill were left growing. I can't find my mint so I will try again. Thanks, mate...elizabeth

[OregonYeti]

I see I missed this thread when it was new, but anyway . . .

I've transplanted mint a few times, using a method I learned while doing horticulture work at OSU.

Take some of the thicker mint stalks
remove the leafiest parts
cut them into 2-4" lengths
rinse them and leave them just a little wet
put the cuttings in a sealed plastic bag

These will stay viable for at least a few days. Then just mix them into some loose soil near the surface of the soil, with some parts protruding, and keep the soil damp but not soggy. They'll grow unless there's something really wrong. Rhizomes are also great for cuttings.