Dividing Perennials

Gardening: Dividing Perennials

Parker Gardens
1325 Terrill Rd, Scotch Plains
Fall is a great time to divide perennials, not just to increase the plants in your landscape but to keep your perennials healthy as well.
By Tracy A. Smith
September 26, 2009

Perennials are awesome plants. Not only do they add seasonal color, but they come back every year. If you time it and plant it just right (and I see about half and half of this process as I make my way through Scotch Plains and Fanwood), you have early blooming perennials, summer bloomers that come into color just as the early bloomers have finished showing their color, and fall bloomers to take you through November. That is about eight months of continuous color!
One other great reason to buy perennials is that they can be divided. By dividing, I mean just what it sounds like — you take a clump and break it into smaller plants. Now, not only do perennials provide color, but they can help fill your landscape and help stretch your money that was originally invested into your garden ... and they are great to share with neighbors.

Another reason for division with some (but not all) perennials is that after a few years in the ground, perennials are ready to be divided into smaller clumps. It helps keep them in the original size that you needed in the first place, and it keeps them healthy. As certain perennials grow, they may become too dense and crowded. The plant may begin to decline as the center, or heart, of the plant becomes somewhat woody. This can be cut away and the younger offshoots are replanted.

Fall is a great time for perennial division. The soil temperatures are warm even though the air is cooler, rain is more abundant, and the daytime temperatures do not cause stress on the plants. By cutting and dividing your perennials in the fall, they will be ready to perform again next growing season.

Division:
Lift out the plant with a spade;
Divide the plants and more importantly the roots into three or four full portions;
If the divisions do not pull apart easily, use a sharp knife to cut through the plant or wedge the portionas apart;
Trim the vegetation back by about a quarter to a third, we want the new plant to focus more on root production than leaves;
Replant and keep watered for several weeks to aid in root regeneration.

Because the plant is about to enter dormancy, do not expect, and do not be alarmed, by the fact that you do not see much new surface growth. That is reserved for spring and summer.