Poll! Did You Bring Plants Indoors to Overwinter?
Am I Crazy, or Is This What Gardeners Do?
Friday October 27, 2006
Every spring, as I'm carrying out the very heavy pots of water plants, tender herbs and whatever else seemed like a plant I just couldn't part with last fall, I vow I will not bring plants in again next winter. I don't have a great deal of space and what space I do have is given over to the seeds I start. So all these winter vacationing plants are huddled together, leaking, shedding leaves and making me question my judgement.
But I know darn well that I'll be carting them back and forth for years to come, if only because I've put in too much sweat equity to turn them into compost.
How about you? Am I the only crazy out there? Place your vote in the poll below and if you have a minute, let us know what you bring in or why you gave up, in the 'comments' link below. My back would welcome any and all advice.
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POLL: Did You Bring Plants Indoors to Overwinter?
Comments
OMG! Agapanthus get moved for tulips and vise versa in late spring. BTW the Agapanthus never bloomed but there’s always next year. This is an in ground transplant to double the effort!
I bring in all my hanging geraniums, cut them way back, in Dec feed them, cut and plant shoots in March, and transfer back to hanging baskets late April. I mark each one for color also. This is a huge cost savings too. I have a few banana trees and dig and store them til next spring. I plant some of the small babies when digging them, gives them a real good start for next year.
I used to live in Florida but live in Illinois now. I have a beautiful bougainvillea in a large pot that I take in each winter. The plant was a gift and has great sentimental value. I wouldn’t think of letting it die. I get the shedding leaves and water stains on the floor in the basement, but it’s worth it.
This spring, I started a good amount of seeds outdoors in February/March/April using the winter sowing method, and it really helped as space inside was tight because of everything I had brought in last fall. If you find yourself short of space, I really suggest you try it. Go to wintersown.org or visit forums.gardenweb.com and check out the Winter Sowing site.
I have always brought in most, if not all, of my summer plants. Be it gerainiums, herbs etc.etc. I just could’nt leave those gorgeous leafy plants out in the cold climate that soon would decend on all Ontario…I live in the southern part of Ontario Can. So I would lug the plants in…I have a fair amount of space with floor to ceiling windows…and they would all be happily crunched on the floor…and the over flow would be placed in other sunny rooms. Many perenials ie impatients would be quickly killed by the first frost, but would look lushous up to that time and I would wait until the frost before pulling up their beauty. But then once hit by frost they were a muchy mess to pull up. So anyway to be able to save some of my plants made my heart happy. But now I am bringing in less and less of the lovely plants….and that makes me sad. Since we now send subtantial time away in the winter I can not expect my daughter-not want to be gardener- to care for all of my indoor plants. So afew years ago I started to put my lovely plants on our front curb….and folk in the nieghbourhood…or from wherever took them away(adopted them if you will)and if they gave them a good home so much the better….but I did’nt have be the one to toss the plants. Also a few of my friends would take a few plants from me. And of course I really need to keep afew for next summer…I could’nt go cold turkey. I have had some plants that I have had for several years….my asparagus fern..is at least 7 years old…and has been chopped into other plant pieces for a number of other new asparagus plants that are thriving….many people I know have a piece of the orignial plant. And the dear old original plant gets lugged into the house each year at summers end. Plant lover
So far, the peace lily, a few canna lilies, and the taro plants have not made it inside. We have just finished building a new home, and we have spent endless hours transplanting plants, and bringing tenders inside. No more room and no more energy.
We actually built a small plant room with a sun-light, tiles on the floor and one wall, and a full length window door for all the non-hardy guys. eg orchids, canna, pond plants, amarylis, ferns, datura, etc. Hopefully they will survive!
Hello all you wonderful gardners out there!!!! Up until now, lol….I only brought in my “charlie” plant….however, since last winter when I lost all my gerainiums (oooo and they were beautiful and had sentimental value to them) I lost a HUGH carnation plant that also had sentimental value to it. I will be bringing them in as well this year. We are getting ready to move anyways, and this is a rental and all but one plant with the exception of the roses that she had here the rest of the plants are mine, and they will be going with me. I didn’t buy them or get them from family and friends for them to keep them? I love my plants. I would just die if anything happened to them.
Kim (blackswamp_girl), thanks for the link to wintersown.com. I can’t tell you how many poppy seeds I have scattered in the early spring, but I can tell you how many poppy plants I have. None. So I’ll be trying the take-out germination method this winter.
Seems a lot of people bring their geraniums in for the winter. I was told that they would eventually would get woody and stop blooming after a few years of reuse. I used to let mine go dormant, but since they were flowering away last fall, I left them under the grow lights and let them bloom all winter. I think they did even better this summer than after the winters when I let them go dormant. Has anyone had problems with woody geraniums?
Marie–
Yes, always bring in my tropicals! Leaving them out to die would be irresponsible, plus they are HUGE and bring in oxygen and beauty for the cold winter months. Make the room and enjoy …
My rosemary and it keeps growing slowly in the winter, but it always make me feel better when I see 3 feet of snow and it freezing and thoughts of spring around the corner.
because my husband and I can’t manage the heavy pots anymore next year I’m going to hire a big strong high school boy to help. not only with pots going in and out but with raking lots of neighborhood pine straw that I use for mulch. never give up!
My fern that hangs by the back door most of the year spends the winter inside in a pot. Potted perrenials go to the attached-though-unheated garage, which has been enough protection so far.
I’m going to try (we havn’t had our first frost yet)bringing in my geraniums this year and some gerbera daisies. In the past when I brought in outdoor plants, I end up with a terrible problem with white flies and other pesky things. The plants get sicklier and I get tired of messing with them and they often don’t make it till spring. But you all have inspired me to try again!
I brought in the spider plants, left out the impatiens, begonias,fuchias,Flowering Maple and 2 small hibiscus.
There is some fungus, wilt or whatnot wrong with them(except the impatiens).
It’s been cold enough, yet they won’t die.
Tuberous begonias have pretty non-existant in retail nurseries.
I bring in perenials and annuals and this year I found the COOLEST ITEMS!
Local gardening centers sell plant stands on coasters so that I can roll my whiskey barrels and other heavy pots in and out of the garage. I can enjoy them outside most everyday and then roll them in at night.
MAKES ME AND SOME NEIGHBORS SMILE…
I used to bring in my cana lily,s all the time,but age came upon me,so now I have natural land scaping. It is beautiful & allot easier Stan
Last year I bought a Elephant Ear bulb at the local nursery. The only one they had was rather large and cost $15.00. I decided to buy it anyway and planted it in a large pot. It had beautiful leaves on it during the summer. Last fall I brought the pot in and let it sit in my south facing window. I didn’t water it until my son-in-law started watering it in March when we were in Fl. This year I put it back outside and I noticed that the leaves were not very large, but there were many. Since the weather got cold this week, I cut off all the leaves and placed them in vases filled with water. They look stunning. The pot is now sitting in my laundry room for the winter. The bulb is huge. Next year I’ll need a very large pot to plant it in.
I also brought in some geraniums, and my basil. I’m hoping it’ll root so I can plant it in pots inside.
So glad to know I am not the only crazy gardener–have always brought in some but since I am in my own home have brought in more than ever and am wondering if some will survive in an insulated but unheated unattached garage–might as well try I guess. So far many including basil doing well in unheated front porch-night temps just above freezing.
Always bring in coleus & geraniums. Sometimes impatiens. Coleus & geraniums get huge and I eventually give away. Asparagus fern likes it cool but I bring in anyway. Especially with the gas prices. house is cool anyway so it thrives.
I always bring in my geraniums and have enough now with the extras I make from spring cuttings to cover a 3′x8′ table in our cool cellar. This year I planted some Victoria Blue Salvia in with some geraniums so they are being saved as well. I’ll be anxious to see if they make it through the winter.
I used to bring in a lot of plants but didn’t have time then to take care of them and they didn’t make it too good. Now I bring in my trees which are 6 & 8 ft tall and that is because they are just outside of the sunroom. I would not be able to handle them if we had to move them very far.
My husband built me a 10X18 ft. greenhouse. The first winter I tried wintering over several plants in it and the gas and electricity cost me more to heat it than it would have to replaced the plants I kept in there. So that was the end of that. Some of my plants I have for 15 years or more I do bring in and take care of them.
As for elephant ears, the ones that grow from bulbs, I can leave them in the ground and they come back. My big upright elephant ear is in a pot and has to be brought in.
So if it is a big plant that took me a few years to grow or a new favorite, I bring them in. Otherwise, they stay out. I have learned to accept the fact that the winter will get them. When you get my age you learn you don’t really need all that extra work or plants. Sure, I used to try to save as many as I could but not any more.
By the way I live in VA.
I bring in geraniums and herbs, and just cut back the geraniums. The clay pots are too heavy, so I now use the plastic imitation for the big pots. The pots go in front of windows wherever. Unheated bedroom is their favorite place. The geraniums don’t bloom much, but they add greenery, and they perk up and start to bloom in the spring. Saves at least $100 in replacing each year.
I bring in a most of my plants except for the annual bedding plants and i even brought in 2 wax begonias this fall. I bring in my 4 ficus trees into the house (one was my mother’s and she got it in 1980…we now use a dolly to move it). I put my 7 big aspargus ferns (my origional fern was my grandmothers and I got it in 1974 and since divided it for new plants for myself, my daughters and many friends) in the garage that has floor heat and is kept at 50 degrees…cut their folage off at the top of the soil…water about every 40 days and put out in the spring after the danger of frost is past. Then I also bring into the house my 4 jade plants, many large and small cactus plants, mother’s-in-law tongue, aloe, a large bridal vale plant. This year I dug up and potted 2 large wax begonia and brought into the house and will take cuttings next spring to use in my outdoor planters. I also pulled up my 12 geranium plants, shook off off the dirt, trimmed back, and hung upside down in the 50 degree garage and will mist every month and then pot up in March to prepare to plant outside when the danger of frost is past. The only plant I don’t put outdoors is my African Violets because southcentral Kansas has very hot and windy summers. Everything else goes back outside in the late spring and back inside in the early fall. I am always sad when the plants leave the house in the spring because the house looks so empty…but in the fall when I get ready to bring them back into the house furniture has been rearranged and I wonder where in the world I had all these plants but I always find a spot for them. They make the house feel cozy and they do help with quality of our in home air. My husband wants to build me a greenhouse that I would probably put some of the plants into but I would still bring a lot of them into our home because I like having them around us literally EVERYWHERE.
Suellen from Medicine Lodge KS
I live in northeast Florida and still although my home was in Lancaster County Pennsylvania, I still bring in many of my tropical plants through the winter. Some of them are orchids, ferns, and certain plants that I considered to be annuals in my past life in Pa. Some of the tropicals, such as the family of ferns, die down to the roots in the 9a zones that I now live in. I simply cover them when there is the threat of frost. Some of them will die to the ground, but with a covering of mulch or pine needles, the roots stay intact where they are. This also applies to the various elephant ears that I have (from the giant to the smaller variety) Each year is exciting to me to see what has survived the previous season. I currently have a
bird of paradise that has been in the ground for 5 years blooming for the very first time. I recommend when writing to this sight, to be able to help those readers relate to your documents, that you mention either your zone or your area where you are from.
I bring approx.75 pots in each year & store them in the basement under many florescent lights, one cool white & one warm white. I keep the pot fairly small since I have to carry them down the basement stairs. In the spring I group them together so it looks very full. Many of the pots contain lantanas which I strip of foliage & prune so that I do not bring in white flies or etc. Each time I water I check for white flies & if I see any I immediately dip a paint brush in alcohol & kill the fly before it can breed. The lights are on timers & a fan circulates the air.
I will bring in almost everything I can save.I have a large red Hibuscus,A pink blooming one,airplane plant,calla lilys,elephant ear,peacock orchids,small cacti plants,catmint(for the 3 cats),Some trailing petunia’s that I will enjoy a few weeks longer,rain lilys,a poinsettia,wax begonia,tuberous begonia, etc. Every year I say I will not bring so many in but In my book they are living things that I can’t let die.I just love plants like my Mother and Grandmother did. I hope my daughters and grand daughters will take some of them when I pass on. I can only hope they do. I have given them many plants from our flower gardens.I think they will.
I received a pot of beautiful Red Tulips on Valentines Day and they are beginning to lose their petals. What do I do next to insure that I can plant them outdoors later? I live in Nashville TN and we will surely have more freezing weather before spring.
Bulbs that have been forced, especially tulips, don’t always survive to bloom again. But it’s worth a try.
For now, cut back the flower stalk and treat the plant as a houseplant. Now is a good time to give it some bulb food. Keep it watered and let the leaves turn yellow and die back naturally.
Plant it outdoors once the soil has warmed a bit and dried out. Probably as the daffodils are fading. Then cross your fingers. Good luck!
I live in New England and have many container plants. My impatients and marigolds are so beautiful that I cannot leave them outside to die off. I usually bring them in over the winter although space is at a premium and my cats like to get into them. Most of them survive and can be put outside in the spring, but some do not, but I have to try although it is a lot of work. My impatients at my front door have gotten enormous and beautiful so I cannot in good conscience leave them out.
Yes, I’m crazy too. We moved to Paulden last Nov. where it gets much colder than Phoenix. I bought a Gardenia tree, planted it in the ground. Over winter it froze, I thought it was dead. When I went to dig it up late spring it still had roots so I put it in a pot. It came back, so this year I am bringing it in, along with my asparagus fern.
Living in the Central Valley of California in
Fresno County, we experience freezing temps. at times, with warnings of course. This late fall I decided to pull out a couple of red bananas, black stem elephant ears, imperial elephant ears, and various others. To my suprise, they are doing so well. The bananas have given 6 new leaves. The elephant ears are actually giving pubs. I’m in shock! This is my first year doing this! I’m so excited! It is definately worth the work. This spring my garden will look fuller, with out the dormant appearence. I will not have to wait until early summer for growth. I’m glad to hear so many do this. I bring them into the house. They are happy… just like I am.
I always bring in my pots of impatiens and store them in the basement. They die back and dry out. In the spring I bring them out in a warm sunny spot until the seeds have germinated. With a little size, I then transplant them to the garden or pots where I want color in the shade.
I live in the middle eastern seaboard of the US, and this works well in this area.
Susan, I would never have thought to do that with impatiens. I guess I’ll have to find more room in the basement.