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tny78

Overwintering

TNY78
10 years ago

Being somewhat new to daylilies, but not gardening, I have a couple of questions regarding my overwintering process. Since we are moving in January (maybe Feb depending on when they finish our house), I decided to not plant a good majority of my orders, and instead pot them up. They are in most 1g, 2g, and large azelea nursery pots. Some are sitting in my flower beds, other on my deck, and others on my cement patio. Are any of these places bad for them? I was told on an earlier post they should be ok for the winter, but to worry about them rotting due to poor drainage more than anything else. I haven't mulched any of the pots either...I was thinking about putting straw over them this weekend...but was worried that it may keep them too moist. Also, we have llamas and alpacas and I use their manure for fertilizer on my roses (great stuff and doesn't need to be composted like other manure); should I put some in the pots now, or wait until spring?

Thanks for any advice, and sorry for all the questions :)

Tammy

Comments (7)

  • Boyd Banks
    10 years ago

    If you can put the pots out of the wind and put straw around the pots and a little over them.I would move them off the concrete.

  • judyannz7
    10 years ago

    Tammy, I thought I posted a follow-up to your question several days ago, but I must have been interrupted before posting. With frigid winter setting in, I may be too late to pass along anything now.

    If you have a sheltered south exposure, particularly with bushes you can put your pots beneath, that would be ideal for overwintering. The bushes will protect from hot sun for the next couple months, and the sun's warmth will store all night. I have an exposed clump under the south edge of a huge juniper which should be a good test! With 3 to be the overnight low, I may change my mind and bring it in the garage! But with 5" of snow over it and the walk out there, maybe not. ;o)

    I have not used your particular brand of manure, though I surely have wanted to try it. Still I wouldn't put it in the pots, not even in the spring. Wait until you can set them out and then put a shovel full of that gold underneath the soil mound you set your daylily roots over. You must show us the results when bloom season arrives!

  • TNY78
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks for the help! I have them all off the concrete and nestled into the existing beds (under evergreen shrubs where I could). It doesn't sound like we get quite as cold as where you are, Judy. I think the lowest I've seen it here is around 10 and maybe 3 inches of snow which usually is melted by the next day :) Hopefully they'll make it through the winter and I can get them in the ground early enough next spring where they'll actually produce some blooms!

    The llama and alpaca manure really is wonderful! We have horses as well, and I never know what to do with theirs because it causes too many weeds if I try to use it. I hadn't thought of putting it under the mound...I'll have to do that! I usually just spread it around the beds or mix it in with the existing soil on new plantings. I think I'll try it under the mound and then they can dig thier roots down to it!

    Tammy

  • judyannz7
    10 years ago

    Tammy, I've only had one bad experience with horse poo, and that was when the truckload turned out to have come from stall cleanings instead of composted field manure. Of course, it burned and I still feel sick about the daylilies lost. So know your poo when you put it under the soil mound.

    The "Winter Test" is still ongoing here!

  • TNY78
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks Judy :) Luckily, the llamas and alpacas go in a communal dung pile and it looks like black jellybeans (people call them "llama-beans"). I call it "organized pooping." haha

    ...and the horses go where ever the mood strikes them, and well, we all know what horse poo looks like! We just scoop it up from the stalls and dump it over in the side pasture. Useless stuff in my opinion.

    Happy Holidays!
    Tammy

  • jean_ar
    10 years ago

    I have daylilies in pots sitting every where on cement, in flower beds and I do not put mulch on them.dont do nothing to them for the winter and have never lost a one in the pots.Have lost several that was planted, but never ones in pots.We don't get a lot of snow here, we usually get the ice storms.Get a couple inches of snow once in a while.

    jean

  • TNY78
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Jean, it sounds like your winters are similar to ours. We get snow maybe 4-5 times per year, but its usually only a couple of inches and it melts within a day or two. Ice...yep, we've got that! I'm glad to hear of your good experience with the pots since thats how the great majority of mine are overwintering. I keep looking at them all going dormant for the winter and panicking! I hope I have as a good of an experience as you've had :)

    Tammy

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