Hello everyone. I recently joined Dave's Garden as a subscriber and found this forum. I hope someone can help me . I've always been an indoor gardening person, but I'm now beginning to venture out of doors with mostly perrenials. I recently tried my hand at rooting plants and now I have some with good roots (white mexican petunia, chrysanthemums, salvia, scarlet sage, etc.). My question is, can these be transplanted now in zone 8a or do I have to overwinter them? I really don't have the space as I don't have a greenhouse.
Transplanting
http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/1474/
that might help.
lots of things you can do outside your house. The bigger the container, the better the chance they'll make it through the winter.
Great Info, Carrie..
Question... I'm still fairly new at gardening. So my question is surely out of complete ignorance...."The bigger the container, the better the chance they'll make it through the winter" --- does this cause a fight between having plants that survive the winter and root rot ? What about the water in the soil freezing? Please help. I am desperately trying to learn about container plants that will survive winter in my area, 8a..
I would guess in your zone the soil in the pots probably won't freeze unless you get an unusually long cold snap. The rule of thumb that I usually follow is that being in a container knocks about a zone off the hardiness--so in order to feel good that your perennials in containers will survive, make sure they're hardy at least to zone 7a. Or you can always sink your pots into the ground if you have things that are a little more borderline--that helps to insulate them from the temperature swings that you can see with the soil in an above-ground pot.
ecrane,
This hardiness thing... What are the chances of the foliage of the plant surviving and looking nice through the winter? Does the hardiness mean that it is just not likely to kill off the plant itself?
Thanks for the advice & weblink, everyone. And thanks, ecrane, for the info about sinking pots in the ground. Great info.!
Deebie
daisylovn--Yes, hardiness just means the plant will survive. Some plants are herbaceous, meaning they will die back every winter and sprout again in the spring no matter what you do to protect them. Others might be supposed to be evergreen, but if they're borderline hardy in your zone the foliage might get damaged by frost and look a bit ratty the rest of the winter but the plant will recover. And others will be evergreen & very hardy in your zone, and those can stay nice looking all winter. If you want to know what to expect from your plants, I'd recommend starting a new thread and post a list of what you have, then people can comment on how they'd likely behave for you.
Plant pot and all then use milk jugs as mini greenhouses. Planting them in pots won't damage the new roots and the surrounding earth will better insulate them. Cut the bottom off the milk jug,place it firmly over the plant. Keep the cap on the milk jug but be sure to take it off on warm sunny days so the plant doesn't cook inside the jug.
P
great idea
Thanks, guys. I feel empowered now. I also received some rooted salvia/sage cuttings recently. I didn't think they'd have enough time to set out roots into the soil in order to survive the winter. So I potted them but didn't know what to do next. The milk jug idea is a great one. In the meantime, I'm going to try to convince my husband to build a coldframe for me.
Deebie, I gave DSO so many projects to do the first year that I moved here, that he couldn't get to build a cold frame before the winter. Somewhere I read and used this easy method.
Buy either 4 or 6 bales of straw, depending on how big a frame you want. Set them up in a rectangle with a large rectangle open in the center. Spread fresh manure on the ground in the opening. Cover the manure with straw.
Line the north side of the inside of the rectangle with aluminum foil. If you want extra warmth, such as for seed germinating, line the insides of the walls with bubble wrap.
Set old windows or an old storm door with windows across the top of the opening. On warm days, slide the door/window onto one side of the straw to let in air and /or rain. On particularly cold nights, cover the window. I used one of those quilted blankets that movers use, weighted down with rocks.
The first year I was here, I germinated all of my seeds this way and grew the seedlings in there until they were large enough to pot. I had about a 90% success rate.
At the end of the season, the bottom half of the straw bales will be decomposed enough to add to your usable compost. The rest can be thrown in your compost pile. The manure/straw mix on the bottom can be shoveled up and mixed with leaf mold and used as compost immediately.
Deebie, how hardy are the varieties you've got rooted? I kind of use that to gauge how late in fall I can plant something. If something is hardy to zone 4 or 5, I'm usually pretty safe (I'm in 6). If they're borderline in your area, they should definitely be protected their first winter.
Thanks for the suggestion about the strawbale coldframe, Stormyla. Gemini, the mexican petunias and pineapple sage are hardy to my zone, 8. I guess I do need to protect them this winter. I'll plant them in pot, sink in the ground, and use the milk jugs as mini-greenhouses. I think when my husband sees those milk jugs in the flower border, he'll probably rush out and build my coldframe. LOL.
Hey Bigred, as for the milk jugs, if I place the tops on them, how are the plants supposed to get water? Is my pot supposed to be larger than the jug? Help the blind, please!
Debbie: Cut off just the bottom surface of the milk jug, and slide the jug over the plant. Don't use the screw-on cap, it will allow air and a small amount of water to enter. You can secure the jug with wire staples (make those with cut-up clothes hangers), or stick a bamboo or similar stake down through the milk jug opening.
Karen
Thanks, I can see clearly now.
Deebie