Getting ready for winter - share your tips and tricks

15 years ago

What do you do to keep your favourite tender plants going from year to year?

It's still too early for a frost, but some of my not so hardy plants have to start coming indoors at night now. I spent today preparing many others so that that when the frost comes, the task of hauling everything inside is easier.

I dug up my ornamental sweet potatoes. I shook off the dirt, trimmed them way back, and planted them into small 4-5" pots. They will go under flourescent lights to pass the winter. They usually survive, but not always. There are usually tubers that can be found in the soil as well. I put them into a small pot with some soil to cover them, and put that into a paper bag. They will pass the winter in a cool spot and next March, I'll start watering the tubers and get new plants.

My geraniums have also been dug up, cut back, and potted into 4" pots. They also go under the fluorescent lights for the winter.

I dug up my banana plants, seperated the smaller pups off, and potted them into 4" pots. They will join the geraniums and sweet potatoes under the lights. The bigger ones will be left outdoors to die (sniff). They're too big.

I snipped off the tips of my Coleus and put four to a 4" pot. They'll root and sit on a window ledge over the winter, and be ready to go next April.

The tender bulbs (Calla, Colocasia, Hippeastrum, Canna, Eucomis...)will be left for another few weeks, weather permitting.

I have to go get some new stakes so that I can tie up the monster Hibiscus - the thing is 7' tall and 4' wide. It takes up so much room, but it's DH's favourite plant, so I have to keep it :-)

Comments (4)

gardeng8
Bonniepunch, It certainly sounds like you've been very busy! I will try the coleus cuttings and plant them up...I have never done this before but it sounds like a great idea. Do you just put the cutting in potting soil and let them root on their own? Or do you put them in water to root first? I put in new bulbs every fall...that way in the spring I'll have increased my bulb collection and it doesn't seem like so much of an effort. I read where a lady put in a few daffodils every year (35 years) and now people come from all over to see this spectacular view. Other than that, I collect seeds for next year and may move a plant or two? C
gardeng8
Bonniepunch, It certainly sounds like you've been very busy! I will try the coleus cuttings and plant them up...I have never done this before but it sounds like a great idea. Do you just put the cutting in potting soil and let them root on their own? Or do you put them in water to root first? I put in new bulbs every fall...that way in the spring I'll have increased my bulb collection and it doesn't seem like so much of an effort. I read where a lady put in a few daffodils every year (35 years) and now people come from all over to see this spectacular view. Other than that, I collect seeds for next year and may move a plant or two? C
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gardeng8
Bonniepunch, It certainly sounds like you've been very busy! I will try the coleus cuttings and plant them up...I have never done this before but it sounds like a great idea. Do you just put the cutting in potting soil and let them root on their own? Or do you put them in water to root first? I put in new bulbs every fall...that way in the spring I'll have increased my bulb collection and it doesn't seem like so much of an effort. I read where a lady put in a few daffodils every year (35 years) and now people come from all over to see this spectacular view. Other than that, I collect seeds for next year and may move a plant or two? C
bonniepunch
Original Author
15 years ago
gardeng8 - the Coleus is easy to root in soil. I take pieces about three to four inches long, strip off all but two leaves, stick it about halfway into the soil and water it. In a couple of weeks, new roots will have formed. It's best if you take the cuttings from shoots that aren't flowering. If you take one that has begun to flower, the cutting will continue to try to flower when it resumes growing. Keep an eye on the cuttings - I find they're prone to spidermites indoors, so I spray regularly with insecticidal soap.

BP