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Ask a Gardening QuestionGardening Questions & Answers: Plant ProblemsSevere transplant Shock - Geum

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Severe transplant Shock - Geum

#1 · 6th May 2025, 10:25 am

Quote from emmagw on 6th May 2025, 10:25 am
Hello everyone!
hope you all had a nice bank holiday!
Sorry in advance for the grammar in this, I’m typing it on my phone! I had it all written out on my laptop but a pop up from the site stopped me from being able to type the rest and I couldn’t close the ad!
7 months ago my family and I moved to this lovely home from a flat in south London and we finally have our own garden! After months of weeding and clearing I’ve started to try and add some lovely flowers but it’s not going so well.
I planted some gorgeous geums in a nice sunny spot last week and they seem to have found the move very stressful. I used all purpose compost and did the trick/hack of digging the hole, putting the plant in its nursery pot in the hole and then backfilling, then removing the nursery pot etc. for the geums I loosened the roots a bit and put compost at the bottom of the hole. Would love to know if you’re meant to loosen the roots on nursery bought plants? Advise online is mixed!
two days later they were completely flat on the floor. My heart broke! I saw these same flowers at Wisley years ago and was so excited to have them in my own garden.
I made a makeshift shade barrier as I put it in a very sunny spot ahead of a very sunny week, I also tried staking them to see if that would help and I think it did a bit. The stems definitely felt a little stronger but I’ve just given in and deadheaded the whole thing now.
there’s a couple of little shoots coming through, is the plant worth saving?! Is there hope? It gets a lot of full sun there and I’m on maternity leave so have a lot of time to water it in between feeding my three month old! I’ve been checking on it every single morning all week like a crazy lady! Can’t believe this seemingly easy and indestructible flower has become so so dead…maybe I’m just a terrible gardener!
would love to get some advise on this, and definitive answers for the following:
*loosening roots when plant nursery plants into pots and the ground
*water amounts when plants have transplant shock
Wishing you all the best,
Emma

Hello everyone!

hope you all had a nice bank holiday!

Sorry in advance for the grammar in this, I’m typing it on my phone! I had it all written out on my laptop but a pop up from the site stopped me from being able to type the rest and I couldn’t close the ad!

7 months ago my family and I moved to this lovely home from a flat in south London and we finally have our own garden! After months of weeding and clearing I’ve started to try and add some lovely flowers but it’s not going so well.

I planted some gorgeous geums in a nice sunny spot last week and they seem to have found the move very stressful. I used all purpose compost and did the trick/hack of digging the hole, putting the plant in its nursery pot in the hole and then backfilling, then removing the nursery pot etc. for the geums I loosened the roots a bit and put compost at the bottom of the hole. Would love to know if you’re meant to loosen the roots on nursery bought plants? Advise online is mixed!

Happy fresh from planting

two days later they were completely flat on the floor. My heart broke! I saw these same flowers at Wisley years ago and was so excited to have them in my own garden.

I made a makeshift shade barrier as I put it in a very sunny spot ahead of a very sunny week, I also tried staking them to see if that would help and I think it did a bit. The stems definitely felt a little stronger but I’ve just given in and deadheaded the whole thing now.

there’s a couple of little shoots coming through, is the plant worth saving?! Is there hope? It gets a lot of full sun there and I’m on maternity leave so have a lot of time to water it in between feeding my three month old! I’ve been checking on it every single morning all week like a crazy lady! Can’t believe this seemingly easy and indestructible flower has become so so dead…maybe I’m just a terrible gardener!

A new hope?!

would love to get some advise on this, and definitive answers for the following:

*loosening roots when plant nursery plants into pots and the ground
*water amounts when plants have transplant shock

Wishing you all the best,

Emma

#2 · 7th May 2025, 8:46 am

Hi @emmagw

Thanks for your question. I can see immediately that the Geums base is bone dry, whilst you've lovingly prepared compost and the planting hole I believe looking at it that drought is the cause of your saggy and sickly Geum!

Give it a thorough soaking and if in a few days the foliage is still super floppy it needs to all be cut back, sounds brutual but if its damaged it wont return where those green shoots will!