Can you bring that flower in for the winter? - Part 1
It is so hard to let go and sometimes you don’t have to!
General Rules for Overwintering Plants Indoors:
- Choose only healthy plants – don’t bother saving a sick plant.
- Bring plants indoors before frost damages the foliage – don’t wait, the cold will damage plants more than bringing them in a bit early.
- Treat for disease and insects before bringing plants indoors – a good preventative spray with a basic insecticide and a garden fungicide will save you a world of trouble over the winter.
- Place in bright areas and add humidity - using pebble trays, large saucers under pots or mist with spray bottles.
- Be careful not to over water – when plants come indoors they go into a bit of shock, so use care in your watering for the first 30 days.
- Reduce the amount of fertilizer you use - when active growth starts in spring, fertilize and prune as needed.
- Avoid sunburn and stress - introduce your plants slowly to outdoor conditions in spring.
The following should help you decide what you can bring in and help you successfully overwinter your favorite plants!
 | VERY Easy TropicalMost are very tolerant of indoor conditions and can be brought in and kept near a window through the winter.
|
 | Easy Tender PerennialsThese plants tolerate indoor conditions, but usually need to be in a sunny window!
|
 | VERY DifficultFull Sun Annuals and Perennials. These plants need the sun and warmth and are extremely difficult to keep over the winter without a greenhouse. Supertunia®, Superbena®, Snow Princess®, Senorita® Cleome, and Superbells® as well as most sun annuals stand a better chance of surviving outdoors than indoors, though most will not – that is why we can them annuals. Unless you have a greenhouse these plants will usually only cause you grief indoors over the winter. The days are just too short without enough light indoors for them to survive. |
