On Wed, 13 Apr 2005 12:15:46 +0100, Spider wrote:

Holly in France wrote in message
news
Hi all,
Please does anyone know if transplanting bluebells at this time of year,
in the green so to speak, snip.....
thought I might rescue some. Is it worth a try??


Yes, planting 'in the green' is really the only way to transplant bluebells.
Replant them immediately so that they don't dry out.

Thanks for that. Rescue completed the same day! Planted on either side of
the walk from our lake to the weir on the river, so they should look
lovely. Went back for some more today but it was too late :-(

It may also be worth collecting seed.

Yes, I do that with mine anyway if I remember at the right time.

This is because bluebells have contractile roots and pull
themselves deeply into the earth; if the bulbs are deeper than the bucket on
the digger, then only the leafy growth will be excavated and the bulbs left
behind.

They have all been scooped up and left to one side in piles of soil for the
moment. When the owner clears the brush, wood etc from the land on the far
side of the soil we will spread the soil out again. As long as they haven't
rotted in the heaps in the meantime I think there is a reasonable chance
that many of them will survive. Hopefully they will then set seed and
re-naturalise again in the long term.


--
Holly, in France
Holiday home in Dordogne
http://la-plaine.chez.tiscali.fr