I have a garden project going that of course isn't moving as quickly as planned. I have quite a few new perennials in gallon pots that I couldn't resist buying thinking they could be planted. I now have to hold them until the beds are ready which may take a while. They are kept watered and fed in their pots now but would it be better sink the pots in a free area that I have until the beds are ready? This area is in a semi-shady spot. It seems they wouldn't dry out quite as fast. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Keeping Perennials In Pots. Possible?
I kept about 300 plants in containers from June/July all the way until Thanksgiving last year while I was waiting for landscaping to be done so I could plant them. They made it through our heat wave where we had temps as high as 115. I had them in an area that got afternoon shade and I watered them every day when temps were high and I only lost a few. So it's not ideal, but if you have the time to be vigilant about watering, etc then you should be able to keep them for a while. The one thing to be careful of is if some of them are on the edge of being rootbound, you may want to repot them into a larger pot if it's going to be a while before you can get them in the ground.
Thanks for the reply. Maybe if the weather stays cool and I move a little faster they will be fine. They are in the sun right now but close to the hose so they stay watered. In fact with what is supposed to be a decent weekend ahead they may just get planted!
I keep plants in pots for ages, to no ill effects. Main problem is if you overwinter them -- the rain/snow causes real problems. But I havne't had any problem in the summer. Just be careful not to overwater or underwater.
Most of my stuff got planted in November/December, but some of my 300 that I didn't find homes for yet made it all the way through the winter and are now entering their second summer (this is what happens when you buy your plants BEFORE planning your garden beds--my eyes were bigger than my garden! But has that stopped me from continuing to buy more...of course not!) A few rootbound ones got repotted but the rest are still in the original pots and doing fine. Of course I don't have the snow problem in the winter.
I would be embarassed to admit how many plants I have in pots waiting for me to dig up spaces in the garden for them. It is way more than 300, that's for sure. But it makes it so much fun when I did up a new area to be able to go "shop" through the pots. Most of them are plants I bought at various co-ops or have swapped for. I freecycled the pots, and used compost for the dirt, so this was not a huge financial investment. But it is a little excessive, I've got to admit.
Well, if I had a bigger yard I would have had way more than 300 too. And part of the reason not all of them found homes is I probably bought another 300 or so in the fall on top of those so don't think that I really only had 300--during the massive heat wave in July I only had about 300 but by the time I got to November and started planting I probably had at least double that!
Thanks for the encouragement. I lost some last year to rotten Quack grass. It just strangled the roots. I don't want the same thing to happen again so I am re-working the yard. We are planning on raised beds and if it takes longer than planned I'll probably just plant everything in another area until spring. I always go wacky this time of year with the plants! I went to my favorite greenhouse yesterday for one thing and came back with three more things to plant. Do they have a twelve step program for this? :)
If they have a 12-step program, don't tell my husband because he'd sign me up.
I notice that most of the folks replying to you on this thread are from warmer zones. I'm in the same zone you are, and I have perennials in pots that come back every year. The biggest surprise was a small terra cotta pot of chives that I thought was lost forever with our harsh winter this past year. I have hosta, clematis, columbine, Jacob's ladder, and some water plants in a container.
Thanks revclaus. I do have a daylily in a container that I store in the garage every winter and it always comes back. I just did it to try it and it has survived. What sizes are the containers you have your plants in, and what type? Chives must be survivors!
All different size, but mostly 14+ inches up to 22". Many are foam pots I've had for many years, and some are ceramic. Very few terra cotta.
Here's one from the west end of my balcony.
Thanks for the picture revclaus.