Monkey Grass
(Image credit: igaguri_1)

A lot of times when you move into a new home, you look around the yard and think about everything you need to do to make the yard yours. Transplanting things is sometimes the most economical way to do that. Let's look at how to transplant monkey grass.

Tips for Transplanting Monkey Grass

If you look around and find that you have monkey grass growing here and there, you have a great starting point. All you need to do is dig some up, roots and all, and move it somewhere else. For instance, if you find that monkey grass grows well around the front walkway of your new home, you could pull a few sprigs of it up, including the roots, and transplant monkey grass under the bushes in front of the house. You will find that Liriope grass transplanting is easy this way, as it will flourish and create a nice grass skirt under the bushes. When transplanting monkey grass, make sure you let it take strong root. Then you might want to spend some extra time raking it for the first few weeks so that any carpet grass runners that grow over top of it can be removed. They try to share the space with the monkey grass, but monkey grass grows so thick that the carpet grass can't get its roots if the monkey grass is established. You might decide to make a new island garden. If so, you can transplant monkey grass into the island to create a frame for the bed or even to make it a nice ground cover throughout the bed.

When to Plant Monkey Grass

Knowing when to plant monkey grass or transplant it will help ensure it survives better after being transplanted. Wait until there is no chance of frost and it should be safe to transplant through midsummer. After transplanting monkey grass, it will need time to establish itself to survive the cold weather and after midsummer, it may no be able to do this. Anytime you make a new flower bed, go ahead and pluck a few pieces of monkey grass to put in it. Liriope grass transplanting works well so long as you include roots with the grass you picked, so it will grow pretty much wherever you plant it. The only thing to watch out for when transplanting monkey grass is that it can be quite invasive if put in the wrong place. Just keep it contained to the areas you want it in, and be sure to pluck it from areas you don't. This is how hardy monkey grass is, and you don't want it to take over your whole garden.

Heather Rhoades
Founder of Gardening Know How

Heather Rhoades founded Gardening Know How in 2007. She holds degrees from Cleveland State University and Northern Kentucky University. She is an avid gardener with a passion for community, and is a recipient of the Master Gardeners of Ohio Lifetime Achievement Award.