There is nothing intuitive about open-ground methods.
Why would plants be untimely ripped from the soil and replanted, when by starting life in a container of suitable media they can be eased into ground with minimal disturbance of, often delicate, root systems?
Open-ground, like democracy, could be said to be the worst system except all the others that have been tried.
Transplantation shock is the singular worst aspect of the open-ground system—some degree of shock is unavoidable when plants are bare-rooted. While the shock can be minimised, it cannot be eliminated altogether. It can range in impact from mild setback to a plant’s progress, to death.
Mänuka is particularly prone to transplantation shock—once it is lifted, the clock is running very fast. Harakeke, in contrast, barely seems to notice the indignity. This is probably largely because of its rhizomes—root–like underground stems—which resist desiccation when exposed to the air.
The factors involved with transplantation shock include:
- • Physiology of the species
- • Seasonal growth stage—vegetative flushing
- • Weather when lifting and planting
- • Weather subsequent to planting
- • Soil moisture content during and subsequent to planting.
Clearly, all these factors also affect container-raised plants, and probably in inverse proportion to the size of the container, relative to the size of the plant.
A number of strategies exist to reduce the transplantation shock to open-ground plants:
- • Choice of species
- • Lifting mid winter
- • Antitranspirant applied to foliage
- • Hygroscopic gel applied to roots
- • Plants stored and transported chilled
- • Minimising exposure during planting
- • Minimising elapsed time between lifting and planting.
Because of the higher degree of planning and knowledge required, a rapid change from container to wholly open-ground methods is most unlikely. However, open-ground plants could rapidly become mainstream in the establishment of indigenous species, if introduced a strategy to reduce establishment costs as a high volume, low cost, quickly planted filler species.
In a word: Harakeke—but
more of that later.
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The Open-Ground and Container-Raised Indigenous Plants Comparison is a Sustainable Farming Fund project.
When They Are Good: Although mänuka is particularly subject to transplantation shock, as can be seen by this specimen (established 17 months) with its 25-millimetre stem, the species can do extremely well. Photography Majorlook Productions