Q.  I have a Cordyline Australis in my yard that I would like to transplant.  What is the best way to do it?  The soil is also very clayey, do I need to do anything about that?

A.  Cordyline australis, particularly older well established large plants can be rather difficult to transplant as they resent their root ball being disturbed.

The best chance of success is to wait until spring, dig a trench about 30cm deep and about 30cm out around the plant, water regularly with a solution of Seasol and leave it for 2-3 months.  If the plant is still looking healthy after the 2-3 months dig the plant out completely.  Try to maintain as much soil as possible around the root ball, a good watering the day before digging will help hold the soil together.

If your soil is very clayey, when replanting your cordyline we'd suggest you only dig a shallow hole and mound a quality good draining soil up around the root ball.  If you plant it too deep in clay soil the hole will act like a bucket and just hold the water.  If roots of Cordyline australis are kept too wet they will rot and the plant will die.

Once you have transplanted your cordyline keep watering regularly with the Seasol solution as it will help with the development of strong healthy roots.