Sharing your plants with neighbors and friends is not only a good way to make people happy, but it also helps spread the immense enjoyment one can get from gardening to others. Perhaps, if the recipient of the gift is a gardener themselves, you may even get a handout in return. If that happens, then you’re potentially able to expand the diversity of your garden and learn the beauty of another plant.
Its a fact — most perennials benefit from being divided every few years. Naturally, there’s a right way to do it and a wrong way. Never do it on a hot, sunny and dry day. Its best done in the fall. The majority of them can benefit from being divided every three to five years. Some may need to be divided every year, like asters or chrysanthemums. Some, like peonies, don’t need to be divided, but can be if you’re looking to expand your stock. Some are best divided by hand like Pulmonaria and Sedum, and others by pitchfork or shovel like Hosta, Phlox and Echinacea. If the plant seems really hardy, then its a good bet that it won’t mind the business end of your shovel.
And the best thing about sharing your plants? If you ever have a disease, pest or other disaster killing your plant, you know that you can ask your friend if they might have any to share back to you. And chances are they’ll be more than happy to help out!