Bringing in Plants to Overwinter
video description
To keep the moisture levels up in winter, I like using the inexpensive large, heavy, thick, glazed clay plant saucers & found, many years ago. They're a bit too heavy but they are big & won't blow away.
You can fill them with any kind of natural pebbles of different types & colors to sit a smaller pot or groupings of pots together to keep the moisture level higher over winter. I've used gravel from when I kept fish tanks, plus pretty rocks I'd bought or found when digging in the yard, & some I'd found at the beach. Not all found rocks are safe in a fish tank though, as they might leach out minerals or whatever.
All my plants are in a sunny corner in the living room where the East & South windows meet & both are floor to ceiling windows, with baseboard heat running right below them. So whether it's the hot sun in summer or the baseboard heat on in the winter, I find that placing saucers with some water in them as well as decorative bowls, a few vases with water placed in windows & around the rooms do really help moisturize the air, the plants - & us.
A few times, I've found my daughter's cat drinking the water in the pebble saucers, though she has a stainless water bowl that I keep filled with fresh water. I've even noticed her drinking water out of a watering can when I came back into the room, with more water for the plants. I was relieved I hadn't put anything toxic to cats into the water. Word to the wise if you have pets - don't leave things lying around.
If you treat your plants while watering or treating them, using poisons, do keep track of & remove / bag or box containers after using, and lift them up to where it won't harm the pets & don't let your pet re-enter that room until that draining toxic water is completely flushed out of every pot saucer.
Since I've been keeping several plants up on tables now, at some distance from the baseboard heat, along with a few large plants which sit inside big urns that look like stone, I haven't used the pebble trays in several years - so I appreciate the reminder. Even those would benefit by having a saucer of water & pebbles beneath it.
I still have some gravel & stones I'd bought when I kept fish, so a store that sells fish tank decor, & related equipment might have what you need - especially if you want to do this quickly & the weather has turned cold or you're not about to go out & search for a bucket full of pebbles & clean gravel. It's a good place to find different colors of gravel & different types of stones pebbles & stones. Also I just recalled I'd found some pretty, larger pebbles & bags of sea shells at a Dollar Store.
Date: 2022-07-16
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Comments and reviews: 9
Jeanne
We moved in November and where were at now has so many spiders as we are now living in the lake. I treated with Bonide a systemic treatment in granules. It was a pain in the buttocks. Also factor in I have two 90lb dogs, one of which likes to eat dirt from my planters, and a cat. So I wrapped a generous skirting of window screen from trunk to halfway to the bottom of the pot. Stapled the seam, if it was a large pot I put four rocks on top of the screen and then wrapped it again. I did that with five planters. A hibiscus, a yellow trumpet tree, a Mandevilla, this giant umbrella plant/tree, Peruvian lily, geranium, and several ferns, ivy, and after seeing your video Ill the coleus too.
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We moved in November and where were at now has so many spiders as we are now living in the lake. I treated with Bonide a systemic treatment in granules. It was a pain in the buttocks. Also factor in I have two 90lb dogs, one of which likes to eat dirt from my planters, and a cat. So I wrapped a generous skirting of window screen from trunk to halfway to the bottom of the pot. Stapled the seam, if it was a large pot I put four rocks on top of the screen and then wrapped it again. I did that with five planters. A hibiscus, a yellow trumpet tree, a Mandevilla, this giant umbrella plant/tree, Peruvian lily, geranium, and several ferns, ivy, and after seeing your video Ill the coleus too.
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Bobbie
too funny was just thinking ahead as to which plants i would like to overwinter & i come across ur video. of course i would like to do all of them. since i've down sized from a 3 bedroom to a 1 bedroom my space is obviously limited. some such as my sweet potato plants will probably take cuttings & go from there. 2 plants that i have grown from when they were babies r my spikes. i over wintered them last year & they did great. repotted them this spring & put them out side basically in a area with little sun. they are now 4 wide & 4ft tall. they r beautiful & rewarding knowing i must have done something right.
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too funny was just thinking ahead as to which plants i would like to overwinter & i come across ur video. of course i would like to do all of them. since i've down sized from a 3 bedroom to a 1 bedroom my space is obviously limited. some such as my sweet potato plants will probably take cuttings & go from there. 2 plants that i have grown from when they were babies r my spikes. i over wintered them last year & they did great. repotted them this spring & put them out side basically in a area with little sun. they are now 4 wide & 4ft tall. they r beautiful & rewarding knowing i must have done something right.
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Pat
Geraniums. I cut the greenery, buds back to bare minimum, repot in clay pots using four month continuous feed potting soil, water lightly when repotting, and then once a month thereafter. I store on pallets in my basement for 3 months then bring them upstairs to a guest room until planting season. I live in Central Maine, but can move the containers onto two covered porches until Memorial Day. At that time I report into showier pots with new soil and fertilize regularly throughout the summer. Geraniums winter over very well and w/little effort.
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Geraniums. I cut the greenery, buds back to bare minimum, repot in clay pots using four month continuous feed potting soil, water lightly when repotting, and then once a month thereafter. I store on pallets in my basement for 3 months then bring them upstairs to a guest room until planting season. I live in Central Maine, but can move the containers onto two covered porches until Memorial Day. At that time I report into showier pots with new soil and fertilize regularly throughout the summer. Geraniums winter over very well and w/little effort.
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Sarah
I have one large picture window in my living room, so it is hard for me to find spaces for all my plants. Thank you for showing me how you transplant your plants. I screwed up this past spring, thinking it was going to get warm in May and we had a good first in May. I almost lost my plants, but they came back. So, this year they won't go out until the last of May or early June. I will have to do some growing lighters, and put some of them in my basement. Thank you for your advice.
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I have one large picture window in my living room, so it is hard for me to find spaces for all my plants. Thank you for showing me how you transplant your plants. I screwed up this past spring, thinking it was going to get warm in May and we had a good first in May. I almost lost my plants, but they came back. So, this year they won't go out until the last of May or early June. I will have to do some growing lighters, and put some of them in my basement. Thank you for your advice.
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Ms.
No offense, I have no problem bringing in POTTED plants that won't survive a 'frost' but I'm NOT planting flowers that can't survive by just being COVERED when a 'frost' is imminent or forecasted and that have to be 'dug up' to prevent them from dying. My opinion. plant flowers for your area, those that can't survive your Heat or Cold should be the ones you pot so you can bring them in the Winter or more carefully WATER them during the Summer.
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No offense, I have no problem bringing in POTTED plants that won't survive a 'frost' but I'm NOT planting flowers that can't survive by just being COVERED when a 'frost' is imminent or forecasted and that have to be 'dug up' to prevent them from dying. My opinion. plant flowers for your area, those that can't survive your Heat or Cold should be the ones you pot so you can bring them in the Winter or more carefully WATER them during the Summer.
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Jan
I have had good outcomes with overwintering Acanthus, silver dichondra, muehlenbeckia wire vine, and Plumbago auriculata in my west basement window. They are not cold hardy here in northern Utah. Many outdoor plants are too prone to aphids, mealy bugs and spider mites when brought inside, but these have resisted bugs so far. Acanthus gets long stems & small leaves, Plumbago even blooms a little but requires clean up in spring.
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I have had good outcomes with overwintering Acanthus, silver dichondra, muehlenbeckia wire vine, and Plumbago auriculata in my west basement window. They are not cold hardy here in northern Utah. Many outdoor plants are too prone to aphids, mealy bugs and spider mites when brought inside, but these have resisted bugs so far. Acanthus gets long stems & small leaves, Plumbago even blooms a little but requires clean up in spring.
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Todd
Great info each year, confirming I'm halfway doing it properly. Have 8ft tall ficus trees, many different tropicals, 10ft palm tree and kept for years bamboo, Ti & yellow pulmaria plants from when I lived in Hawaii, to Boston ferns to coleus annuals trying to over winter without a green house (wish had one as you)
Now early october & soon preparing, treating my container plants for indoors once again!
Cheers!
reply
Great info each year, confirming I'm halfway doing it properly. Have 8ft tall ficus trees, many different tropicals, 10ft palm tree and kept for years bamboo, Ti & yellow pulmaria plants from when I lived in Hawaii, to Boston ferns to coleus annuals trying to over winter without a green house (wish had one as you)
Now early october & soon preparing, treating my container plants for indoors once again!
Cheers!
reply
Dianne
Great video. I'm in zone 4 (western Canada) and I've been bringing in plants for a number of years. I have found recently that if I pot them up and keep them outside for a 4-7 days before I bring them into the sunroom, I've had better luck. I'm thinking it's doubly-stressful to be repotted and then new light/temp conditions, so one step at a time seems to be less stressful for them.
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Great video. I'm in zone 4 (western Canada) and I've been bringing in plants for a number of years. I have found recently that if I pot them up and keep them outside for a 4-7 days before I bring them into the sunroom, I've had better luck. I'm thinking it's doubly-stressful to be repotted and then new light/temp conditions, so one step at a time seems to be less stressful for them.
reply
Bonnie
Perfect video.
We have heirloom seeds, from the Sierra Motherlode, Year 1.
Eggplant, Peppers, Tomatoes, from the High Sierra U. V. of 10.
Also chard, kale, potatoes.
We have Permaculture roses and apples, here, so I am going to build cold frames, and try to harden them, for occasional snow.
Otherwise, we will build underground greenhouses.
reply
Perfect video.
We have heirloom seeds, from the Sierra Motherlode, Year 1.
Eggplant, Peppers, Tomatoes, from the High Sierra U. V. of 10.
Also chard, kale, potatoes.
We have Permaculture roses and apples, here, so I am going to build cold frames, and try to harden them, for occasional snow.
Otherwise, we will build underground greenhouses.
reply
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