hello .. there is a grevillia growing into the driveway in a garden i look after, and i would like to move it, rather than cut it back .. although, i suppose that might also be an alternative .. however, that said, i'm wondering when the best time would be to move this fellow, and will i have to cut it back some anyway as a consequence to cutting some of its roots? .. thanks ..
Note spelling is Grevillea. Would probably be better off pruned than dug up. Note also that top pruning at planting time does not assist in establishment. The need for pruning the top to "balance" root loss is a myth, and actually has the opposite effect - root growth is promoted by energy and hormones coming from the top. Cutting the top back reduces the amount of these.
thanks for the correct spelling .. and i'm interested to hear that the "balance" concept is a myth .. for some reason, it made sense to me, but i also see what you are saying .. i'll keep that in mind .. so, it would be best to cut the grevillea back .. and, would you cut branches out at the base, or would you cut them back to shorten them .. what would be the best for the plant .. its full of flower buds right now, so we're going to lose some flowers, but really, better that than continually being smacked by the passing vehicle ..
Altho I have heard of people successfully moving a grevillea, it is going to be a long shot, (fairly analogous to moving an arbutus menziesii)...the plant family (proteaceae) it is in have extremely sensitive roots, and sometimes up and die even if not disturbed. They definitely can be headed back, the big ones in the UBC alpine garden were so huge, they had to be pruned back from the footpath for many years...(until they were finally removed from that spot...too successful!) I would just trim back the offending branches as needed...they seem to be fine with this. Too bad about the flower buds, the winter flowers are a welcome bonus with some grevillea species.
My G. victoriae have been blooming Aug-May in recent years, with more than one flush of buds per year - in the manner of a Vireya rhododendron. So, you will not be likely to get more bloom for awhile from sections pruned back but as soon as another flush of growth is made next year a return to flowering seems possible.
I would suggest going with the prune, there is extremely little chance of survival if you were to try transplanting, as growest mentioned. If you are pruning be sure to do so right above a fresh shoot or node and avoid cutting into woodiy stem. Many Grevillea wil not re-shoot well if you have cut into older wood leaving just a stump so try to prune at forks and branches. Prune so the cut is angled slightly away from growing point.(See photo) I'll add a couple of flower pics.
actually, a gardendown the road from where i work lost a grevillea this summer .. it just up and died .. i don't think it had been disturbed in any way, so it's been a bit of a mystery .. i had a daphne do the same in a different yard about a year ago .. hmmm ..
thanks so much for the pics .. are they of grevillea? .. so different than the one i look after .. the flowers, at any rate .. the leaves are certainly alike .. how beautiful .. will try and remember to post pics of the one here once it starts blooming ..
Yeah here are a couple more: Grevillea are not the most long lived plant. The 'Silky Oak' Grevillea robusta being probably one of the longer surviving varieties. Often the rootstock of a 'Silky oak' is used for grafting less hardy Grevillea. (pic 1 & 2) or even to graft ground covers for a weeping effect (pic 3). I have found the newer hybrids to be less reliable but that seems true across the board with most of the newer varieties of plants. They are reasonably sensitive to their surroundings but can withstand neglect and often flower more prolifically when in less favourable conditions. Once established, after the 1st year most will grow with minimal care. All flowers are produced on fresh growth so regular pruning will promote abundant flowering. A light prune regularly is the best way to maintain Grevillea.