How to Separate Lily of the Valley Plant Before Planting
With fragrant, small white flowers in spring, the lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis) is a woodland perennial that spreads into a sweeping groundcover. Growing from rhizomes, or fleshy swollen underground stems, the rhizomes are usually called "pips." Digging up and transplanting lily of the valley increases plant numbers and often results in better plant vigor and flowering displays. Once dug up, gently prying and jostling the rhizomes and roots apart yields divisions that can be immediately planted in new garden areas. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Dig around a clump of lily of the valley with a garden shovel. Place the shovel blade five to six inches away from the leaf stems before piercing the soil so to avoid slicing into healthy roots and rhizomes (pips).
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Lift the root clump from the ground and place on the ground. Slide the shovel out from the clump.
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Jostle the rootball of the plant with your fingers to gently dislodge soil from the roots and pips. Chop into hard soil with the tip of the shovel to help remove the soil. If the soil is extremely hard to work with, water the rootball and allow it to soften over 20 to 30 minutes.
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Wedge your fingers into the rootball and wiggle your fingers to further dislodge soil from roots and rhizomes. Use a large gardening fork, like a potato fork, as a wedge on very large or entangled rootball clumps. Slice the fork's tines into the clump followed by your other hand's fingers to further jostle and shake away soil and pips with the added leverage of the fork.
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Gently pull at pips freed of soil, trying to pull them from the clump with as many roots as possible. If pips and roots are entangled, use a knife to cut roots away to harvest an unharmed pip. Use a different cutting blade if desired, such as a hand pruners to cleanly cut away roots. Avoid cutting away roots that are free and attached to pips.
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Consider retaining pips in small clusters that are compacted or intertwined with their roots. Even if not separated, the digging, lifting and separation from the larger clump is beneficial for the plants.
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Replant the pips in the desired area of the garden, placing them at a soil depth that matches their previous growing conditions. Discard any pips that seem very small or not vigorous, as well as any pierced or damaged during the digging and separation.
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Tips & Warnings
Dig up and divide lily of the valley either in early autumn or in late spring immediately after their flowering ends. Summertime division is possible if plants never dry out.
Keep the pips moist during the separation process as well as leading into transplanting. Digging on a cloudy day, or in the morning when it is cooler, retains moisture in soil and around roots before replanting.
All parts of Convallaria majalis are poisonous. Wash hands thoroughly after working on the plants before placing anything in your mouth,and certainly do not let children or pets chew on any plant parts.
In some regions with moist, sandy loam soils this perennial grows so voraciously it is considered an invasive plant.
