When it the best time to move a Butterfly Bush?

I don't know if this is the right place to ask this, but when is the best time to dig up a butterfly bush and to move it to another spot?

Your zone 8b is fine for transplanting now. By the time frost hits, it should be rooted in some. Cut it back in late February. Keep it well watered.

can you root butterfly bushes? - there a few beauties
around here I would love to propagate

yes you can but it's too late. Take soft wood cuttings in the spring. Cuttings can be nodal or inter nodal. Semi ripe cuttings are taken in mid summer

Can one transplant a Buddleia in the spring at trimming time?
I have 2 I'd like to reposition.

Any luck?

Thanks,
Christine

I think so but dont do it when the weather is too warm

When is the best time to trim butterfly bushes. I'm gonna try to root some NOW. What have I to lose. Everone said I'd never get Mandevilla (sp) to root in the late fall but about 1/2 I planted has leaves now.

What color do you have? Also, what size does it get?

they are best pruned when the growth buds burst into life. A hard prune works best

Pins if U are talking to me I have purple ones & they have gotten quite big..they need pruning back.

Sorry, Sugar_fl for the confusion. Yes, I was asking you about the color. I'm trying to get a variety of the bushes and was wondering if we could trade cuttings. I'm cutting mine back now.

pins..sure if they are a color U want. I have never sent cuttings in the mail so U or someone needs to clue me in on how.. I would guess I should just cut them, wrap the ends in wet paper towels & a bag for leakage & send fast. Let me know..OK

That's exactly how to send them. Since they are in dormancy there shouldn't be a problem. I'll send you my addy by email. I have white and lavender ones.

Pins I read your letter before I did this post.

I'm going to move them shortly, I think. It's getting forsythia time here in So.MD.

Does anyone have a Doubonet? I'm liking the almost-red color of it. Ironically, there is no red Buddleia! Just purples shading to red.

I'm interested in trading if anyone does. I have:

Buddleia davidii - Butterfly Bush: 'Black Knight'
Buddleia x weyeriana - Butterfly Bush: 'Honeycomb' (very small)
Buddleia - Butterfly Bush: 'Nanho Blue'
Buddleia - Butterfly Bush: 'Nano Purple'
Buddleia - Butterfly Bush: 'Royal Red'
Buddleia - Butterfly Bush: 'Strawberry Lemonade' (verigated!)
Buddleia - Butterfly Bush: 'White Ball' (Miniature)
Buddleia - Butterfly Bush: 'White Profusion'

I live in RI (zone 6) Can I plant a butterfly bush now? I already have one and would love to plant one in my backyard also. Thanks for the info

Flowergirl,
Yes, plant it now. Water it in really well.

I love my butterfly bushes, my black night turned out to be purple but the butterflies love it, I purchased a red, now I understand there is no such thing, its besides my black and they look exactly alike. do butterflies like one color over any other? I have a baby white and am hoping the butterflies will enjoy this color also.
Yvonne

I don't know if butterflies have a color preference, I think they go mostly for the nectar. I've seen them on mine no matter what color the plants are. But if your Black Knight and your red one look exactly alike one of them was mislabeled--Black Knight isn't black (it's dark purple) and the reds aren't red (they're dark pink) but they are different colors than each other.

My experience has been that these plants don't like transplantation if established plant with roots are dug from the ground.

Transplanting from a pot into the ground works better

They are deep rooters, which may be why they do so well in the harsh CA heat with little water.

Rooted cuttings are fairly easy. We scarify the cutting and dust them with root growth powders and place them in perlite in protected areas outdoors. We sheltered ours from the hot sun in the afternoons until they establish strong roots.

I've transplanted them without too much trouble, just like with anything you need to get as much of the roots as possible but they're pretty tough plants. My neighbors a couple years ago transplanted a huge 10 ft tall one in the middle of summer and it did fine (definitely wouldn't recommend doing it in the middle of summer, but that goes to show how tough they are!)

I am new at this...as you will soon determine by my questions. I have a very large butterfly bush that has outgrown its corner. I would like to separate it and plant along a fence line. Can I just dig it up and separate roots like I do with my daylilies and irises?

(no laughing anyone :)

Since they're really more of a shrub I don't think you can divide them like you would with perennials. If you like it where it is, you can always prune it back a lot, then prune it every year to keep it the size you want it. Or if the real goal is to make more of them you can start some cuttings.

I'd go with the cuttings, which are easily rooted.

We did transplant 2 medium size bushes in July. We tore down a chicken coop, so these ended up being the middle of the yard, which is why we moved them. One didn't seem to be affected at all. The other looked like it died, but when I got ready to remove it, it had a lot of new growth at the bottom.

Robin

I cut mine back almost to the ground in feb when it's over 35 degrees... it stays pretty compact

http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/196432/

Thank you for the advice. I will now need to research the best way to take cuttings.

oops... I meant over 50 degrees

I just transplanted 2 dug them up from a friends yard, they where big have to prune them back a lot to fit in the car, and replanted in my yard, that was 2 weeks ago and they are doing fine. Don't know the colors as yet, next year but I know one was white I think.
I had 2 of the Black Night now down to one. I cut one back severely, started to come back then a severe cold front came in and kill it. the other is fine, I didn't cut it back as much.
Have tried to take cuttings but have failed each time. Sad

At least I think this is it? mine have narrow greyish fuzzy leaves

I would be careful with them--they are invasive in your area http://www.nwcb.wa.gov/weed_info/buddleja_davidii.html

I know, but these are not to bad.