Can I Move Plants From My Garden To Pots?

Question

I want to move azaleas, hydrangeas and spurge that have been growing in my garden to pots. I live in Labrador City, NL, Canada

Answer 1

Yes, but those are shrubs, so you will need large pots, i.e., large enough to contain the rootball with a couple inches more. Also, when you dig them up, try to get as much of the rootball as possible. And realize that moving them to containers means the roots are less protected in winter. The rule of thumb is that plants in a container should be hardy at least two more zones. For example, if a plant is hardy to zone 4, and your location's hardiness is zone 6, it should do OK over winter. However, when I look up your zone, I am getting 1a, which I doubt is warm enough for any of those shrubs in a container. I've included information about Canadian hardiness zones below.

You can move them to a sheltered area, such as a garage or basement, for the winter. Azaleas in particular are only hardy to about USDA zone 6.

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/planting-zones/are-canada-zones-similar-to-us.htm