Jacki Cammidge is a Certified Horticulturist specializing in frugal, low-input gardening and propagation, with lifelong hands-on experience and years as a wholesale nursery head propagator.

Dividing Perennials

How to Make More Plants by Division

Did you know you can increase the number of plants for your garden exponentially by dividing perennials? They are very easy to divide by cutting parts of the main plant off, or splitting the whole thing into many more pieces, each producing an entire new plant.

Division of plants will provide you with several identical plants. These are known as clones, unlike growing them from seed which will always give you individually unique plants (even if they look similar to you).

You will need some basic tools; a garden fork (or two, to make it even easier) or a spade, and maybe a large knife, like a machete. This makes it possible to get deep into the core of the mother plant and chop down to cut it into pieces.

Decide how many pieces your plant can be cut into. Odd numbers are best, so five, seven etc. These make the final planting look much more natural. And of course, you will stagger the plantings, and group them as they would occur in nature, not in a row of soldiers or symmetrically.

How to Divide Perennials

First, dig out the plant, or at least a side of it. If it's too big you may have to do it in stages until it's down to size. Cut off a section with the knife, or use the spade and fork, back to back so you can pry the pieces apart.

This is going to be the only way with plants like Hemerocallis, which make a dense mat of roots and tubers.

Each piece will quickly make a new plant, either spaced out away from each other in the bed, or moved to a nursery bed or even a container.

Plants like Iris which have large tubers and chunky roots can be pulled apart rather than cut. This will help them become established quickly rather than rot from the damage to the tuber.

This list of perennials that will be okay to divide is not extensive, but you will notice that they're all similar in structure.

They all have a crown that expands outwards with new growth, so cutting it into pieces makes it possible to have roots and a portion of the crown.

When Is a Good Time To Divide Perennials?

For timing, generally it's best to do this process early in the spring, for a couple of reasons.

First, you can see what you're doing with less foliage on the plants, and also access the one you'll be dividing.

Also, with less growth, there will also be less damage to the plant when you're cutting through it. Having said that, any time is a good time; preferably just prior to a good soaking rain (so you don't have to water them) and also when it's not too hot.

Evening is the best time. Then the split plants will have all night to come to terms with their new situation, and if they've had a good drink, they'll adapt much quicker than if they are limp from dehydration.

Dividing perennials is one of the most economical ways to increase the number of plants.  Rather than having only one of each plant you can quickly have a mature garden with drifts of one type of plant for a very impressive display of bright blooms or textural leaves.

---

---

Sign up here for all the updates;