How to move house plants without harming them

Moving house plants starts a week in advance

Plants are the most delicate load you'll carry in a van. They have no packaging, can't cope with being tipped over and react badly to frost and to several hours in the dark. So plan moving your house plants separately, not as an afterthought to the furniture.

Water well in advance

Give them their last proper watering three to four days before the move. On moving day the compost should be slightly moist. Wet soil is heavy, crumbles and the water leaks onto whatever is under the pot. A completely dried-out root ball, on the other hand, weakens the plant exactly when it has to cope with stress.

Check plants for pests

There's no point taking spider mites to your new flat. Check the undersides of leaves, the rims of pots and the surface of the compost. Treat affected plants at least two weeks in advance. In the van the plants will be squeezed together and an infestation will spread to the rest of your collection.

Put off repotting

Don't repot just before moving. The plant would be dealing with two stresses at once, and a freshly repotted root ball falls apart when tilted. Save the new pot for when the plant has got used to its new spot — a month after the move is fine.

What to wrap plants in

A box without a lid is better than standing them loose

The safest packaging is an ordinary sturdy box. Several smaller pots will fit into one and support each other. Fill the gaps with scrunched-up paper or tea towels so the pots can't shift. Line the bottom of the box with plastic or an old towel.

Protect the leaves, not just the pot

It's usually the leaves that break, not the pots. Loosely tie up bushy plants with string or wrap them in a paper cone so the branches don't stick out. Only use plastic for a few dozen minutes, otherwise the plant will sweat underneath it.

Stand large plants on a tarp

You won't get ficuses and palms into a box. Stand the pot in the middle of an old tarp, pull the corners up and tie them around the trunk. That gives you something to hold the plant by, and the soil won't end up all over the van.

Transport ceramics separately

Heavy ceramic pots are the most common cause of damage. They break, and so does whatever they fall on. With large plants, take out the plastic inner pot with the root ball and transport the outer pot separately, wrapped in a blanket. You put them back together in the new flat.

Label what's inside

Mark boxes of plants on all sides. Whoever carries one must know it mustn't be turned over or put in the middle with things stacked on top. Big lettering and an arrow pointing up are enough.

Transporting plants in a van

Watch the temperature, not the speed

Frost will kill a tropical plant within minutes. In winter, wrap plants in newspaper only just before carrying them out, and don't leave them standing on a ramp or in an unheated vehicle. In summer, on the other hand, a closed vehicle in the sun is dangerous, as the temperature shoots up quickly.

Load them last

Plants go in only after the furniture and boxes. That way they spend the least time in the van and you get them out first when unloading. Place them against the side wall where nothing can fall on them, and never put them under heavy items.

Secure them against movement

A plant needs to be supported on all sides. Line up boxes of pots tightly together, wedge large plants between mattresses or brace them with a strap. Tall plants are sometimes better transported lying down, with the root ball propped up, than left swaying upright.

Keep them in the van for as short a time as possible

Plan the journey so the plants don't stay in the van overnight. If you're moving in two stages, take them in the last one. Unlimited mileage within the Czech Republic means you don't have to hold back because of kilometres and can easily make a separate trip for them.

The first days in the new place

Unpack them straight away

Unwrap the plants before anything else. Remove the string and paper, wipe the leaves and check whether any soil has spilled. Cut broken shoots off cleanly — a ragged stump heals more slowly.

Find the right light gradually

New windows let in light differently from the old ones. Don't put a plant straight into full south-facing sun, even if the same species grows there at a friend's. Leave it for a few days in bright shade and only then move it closer to the window.

Hold off on watering and feeding

Dropped leaves after a move are a normal reaction, not a reason to intervene. In the first few weeks the plant is coping with different humidity and temperature. Water according to the state of the compost, not the calendar, and don't feed for at least a month.

Think about how much space you'll need. You'll find the dimensions and practical features of each van in our fleet, and answers to practical questions about pick-up in the FAQ section.