Moving a castor oil plant

Discussion in 'General Gardening Discussion' started by Stef23, Nov 26, 2015.

  1. Stef23

    Stef23 Apprentice Gardener

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    Hi
    I have an 8ft Castor Oil plant and need to move it about 6foot from its current position. I have no idea about the size of the root ball I would have to dig around.
    Any advice would be extremely helpful and appreciated.
    Thanks
     
    Stef23, Nov 26, 2015
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  2. NigelJ

    NigelJ Total Gardener

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    Castor oil plants are usually grown as half hardy annuals in the UK. Assuming your plant is outside the first frost will probably kill it off.
     
    NigelJ, Nov 26, 2015
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  3. pete

    pete Growing a bit of this and a bit of that....

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    I'm thinking it might be Fatsia????
     
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      pete, Nov 26, 2015
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    • Stef23

      Stef23 Apprentice Gardener

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      Hi Both
      It certainly looks like a castor oil plant to me. It's in a very sheltered part of the garden as we put it there probably 15 years ago.
      Any ideas on how to move it?
      Thanks
       
      Stef23, Nov 27, 2015
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    • JWK

      JWK Gardener Staff Member

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      What's your location @Stef23 ? I am assuming it's Fatsia japonica which is sometimes called the 'False Castor Oil' rather than Ricinus, which most folk here would call 'Castor Oil', which is very tender and would have died in the frosts last week.

      The root ball will be quite sizeable, you'll need to get as much as possible up, generally roots spread to the same size as the leaf canopy, that would be too much to lift on your own, you can cut back to about half that generally with evergreens, just make sure it is well watered for a year afterwards.

      Mine is currently flowering so if yours is the same it would not be a good idea to move it now. Wait till April for a better chance of survival. They don't mind being pruned so you can do that at the same time.
       
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        JWK, Nov 27, 2015
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      • raebhoop

        raebhoop Gardener

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        raebhoop, Nov 27, 2015
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      • wiseowl

        wiseowl Amicable and friendly Admin Staff Member

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        This is my Fatsia Japonica in flower;)

        [​IMG]
         
        wiseowl, Nov 27, 2015
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      • Stef23

        Stef23 Apprentice Gardener

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        Cheers jWK and others for responses. Could well be a false one as I am no expert. I live in Caerleon South Wales.
        Advice from JWK seems very sensible
         
        Stef23, Nov 27, 2015
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