Can I grow anything in containers here in my zone?Perennials I mean.Thanks,Jody
Zone 5b/6a gardening????
I am successfully growing a Bloodgood Japanese Maple, various hostas and a juniper (Bonsai) in containers. Generally, I put their containers close to the house and throw a shovel of snow on them occasionally. It is very important that the container not be allowed to dry out.
JoleneS,
I've heard to do the same with roses in containers.Give them a good soaking and let them freeze.It's the wind that kills the roses it dries them out I suppose covering them with snow is like using burlap or blanket to keep moisture in their stems.Thanks that helps me out.Jody
Putting down a good layer of mulch is also important, straw or evergreen boughs would be good. I’m in zone 7, but I’ve kept some tropical plants like spider plants out all year, just by putting them up by the house and mulching the pots. One year the leaves started to wilt and I had to bring it in, but it bloomed out far better than it ever had before. Look at the hardy zones on the plants you are interested in, some are hardy to –40 degrees Fahrenheit. You want something that is hardy to at least 10 degrees colder than the coldest temperature you are likely to get.
Thanks
Jody
Hi :)
Actually, with roses, it's better (from what I've read--this is my first year growing roses in containers) to move them into a shed, garage, or unheated basement after a few hard frosts, when the roses go dormant. That way, you don't have to do anything but water it about once a month until the weather is warm enough again to move them outside. :)
Kelly
I read in a container gardening book that if you choose to leave pots of perenials outside during the winter, it's best that they be two zones hardier than the zone you're in. This is due to the fact that their roots are more exposed to freezing in thin pot walls than they are with the ground to protect them. I'm not sure how true it is, but just to be on the safe side I'm only leaving out pots with plants rated for zone 5 or 6, when I'm in zone 7. Everything else is being dragged to safety.
Jess
Jess ,
That makes good sense...do you remember where you read that?.. it sounds like an interesting article...I think I'll just put all mine in the ground and be done with it...They'd have a better chance of survival.
Thanks
http://www.bbg.org/gar2/topics/design/handbooks/potted/drought.html
Here's a link to the book. It's about xeriscaping, which being in the desert, I'm interested in xeriscaping, but in the article online it mentions the whole zone thing I was talking about.
Jess
Jess,
I have had delphiniums in a container for many years now. I think I should have been cutting them back after they bloom, and I put some ground cover whose name I can't remember, but they do fine!
xxx Carrie
I have had tall phlox, and Sweet William in pots over the winter. The Sweet William stays green through the coldest weather. I have been putting my hostas in pots this year and then burying the pots in the ground because I am scared to leave them above ground. They would probably be allright, but I feel better with them in the ground.
Susan =^..^=
You can grow 90% of perennials in pots in our zone, without worry. Just drag them up under the eaves of your house, on the south side, and they will be fine.
I've done this very thing for most of my gardening years (40+) and never lost any to freezing. They will go totally dormant and emerge in the spring - they will get the needed moisture from Mother Nature - they will adapt to whatever nature tosses at them.
If you think about it, nurseries keep their perennials outdoors in containers year around, and they don't lose many, either.
Great info everyone!!!
I'm going to give it a go then and hope for the best.:-)
I bought losts of baby heirloom roses this last summer off of ebay. I'm so scared I'll lose them,I couldn't afford them to begin with.:-)
Kay your right nurseries do leave there plants potted up during the winter,it makes sense.
What about daylilies,will they survive too?
Thanks,Jody
Yes, daylilys will do fine. Unless your roses are established, you will need to put some sort of mulch over your mini roses - I use leaves and hold them in place with nylon netting, pegged down with bent coat hangers.
Kay,
That's the best news I've had all day.:-)