Well, the Acid Queen was moved to her new throne today and seemed to tolerate the move well. Transplanting with hempys has become a regular part of the process because it is much easier to feed, move, and generally care for a plant that is in a small container. Like other types of canna culture, there is disagreement about the size, type, and even the shape of the starter container! I used what I happened to have around when the need arose.....a cut down 1/2 Gal milk jug. Again, time to transplant varies widely among growers. I like to transplant shortly after the second set of leaves sets. Roots have generally become well established but not so long that you risk damaging them when placing them in their new home.
I have a fairly simple and easy way of transplanting. First, I dig a hole in the perlite medium of the final container. In my case, this is a 2.5 Gal bucket I picked up at Wally Mart for 1.98 each. The hole should be as close to the size of the small container as possible. If you lightly wet the perlite in both containers, it will stay together easier with less sliding and filling. Then I take the small container and cut down the corners of one side with scissors. I then position the small container over the hole in the new pot, pull down the flap I cut and carefully slide the plant and medium into the hole. If you are careful, this should work well. Mound up the perlite around the plant, making sure you have enough perlite to fill your container to within an inch of its top. Perlite tends to settle, especially after wetting, so you might have to add more later.
I have been thinking that the Queen looked a little leggy, so I lowered the light again to about 26"....will keep a close eye on this!
Following are some pics of this process:
The Queen in her new throne room!
. I've never watched a hempie grow before, very interesting 
. Plant is looking very content buddy!
