yes you could take cuttings of the impatients to root and start new plants for indoors over the winter. you will need good lighting. then you can take cuttings again and start new plants for the spring. You can dig up a whole plant, and keep it watered, but i always endup taking 2 sets of cuttings to get them thru til spring

the begonias will work the same way. but you would need to check out how to start them from cuttings. a basic begonia book from the library should do it.

i don't know about the polka dot plants. you coupd start by digging some up and potting them for indoors. then check for details.
diggerb

Polka dot plants will also do well indoors. A word of caution on the impatiens, they like a warm room. My entry room gets down to 50-55 degrees farenheit, and they keel over in there. I'm going to keep them in the bathroom this year.

I also bring in pelargoniums (commonly called geraniums.) The pelargoniums can handle the cooler temps of my entry room and 'sort-of' sunroom. Wax leaf begonias are another I will bring in. The impatiens are my favorite for indoors though. They just keep blooming so wonderfully. I'm going to take cuttings and root them in water. In fact, I might see if I can keep some in water the whole winter, just to see what happens.

cantstop, how dry did you try to keep the imps when you had them in that cooler area? Don't know if it would make a dif but kept more on the dry side in such an area perhaps would help. Cool+moist+imps = rot

Interesting. Thanks Paul. I may try some there. Though I suspect I kept them fairly dry. (I forget to water my house plants regularly. :-( )They did look more wilted like after a freeze outside though.

Coleus also do great indoors. If you have some, take cuttings and root in water for winter houseplants =)

I have some wax begonias that have lived through 2 winters inside my house. They don't look as good as the ones outside in the summer, but they do bloom...and in not really bright light which is even better. Impatians are harder to me. Keeping the room warm enough and bright enough can be a trick. I have tried it for the past 3 years with the double "rose" like impatians and no luck. I will try it again this year because I'd really like it to work.

For the record, all the plants you listed are perennials.

I overwinter many perennials we grow as annuals here in MI. They include coleus, snapdragon, calibrachoa (million bells), pelargonium, geranium, and others. Some do well taking a rest in a cool spot with low light & others do better under warmer conditions with good light, where they continue to grow actively. Some respond well to either method. I would cut the begonia back hard & put it in a cold room or on the basement floor & keep it quite dry for the winter. A couple of weeks after day length turns the corner in late March, I would begin to expose them to more light & begin supplying more water. By May you will begin to be able to move them outdoors when temperatures allow & bring them in as required when temps fall, or you can just withhold water a little longer & move them outdoors after danger of frost has past.

The begonia can be propagated by stem or leaf cuttings. You can also use a sharp tool to make short cuts through main leaf veins and pin a leaf to moist soil. New roots and individual plants will form at the point where veins were severed if you place the plant in bright indirect light. It helps to tent when using this method.

Al

The biggest determinant is, of course, whether the plant in question is a true annual. The ones mentioned thus far, while grown as annuals here, are actually tender perenials. True annuals live for only a year [or less] before dying no matter how good the care.

I pretty much do what Tapla does. I've have great success with over wintering purple fountain grass that is also grown as an annual in colder zones. I dig it up, cut it way back, and divide it. I pot up quart size pieces and put them in the cool basement under low light. I bet they would be ok in cool(30-40F)dormant situation too. Keep them mostly dry.

I live in northern new jersey and would like to over winter a few plants.....my question is when do I bring them in. I have a Euphorbia that I cut back and have been bringing in at night for about 4 days now and I have a hibiscus which I cut back about 50%. I also have two small Canna stems which were attached to a main plant that I removed at a customers house....I potted them too. The nights aren't too cold yet but I brought them all in already....is it too early? Please help!

I also grow Coleus Indoors and Geraniums they Geraniums do get leggy but they look very nice in hanging baskets with spider plants , the Coleus look amazing in the winter because they contrast with the snow outside the window their positioned by, I grow them at the base of larger plants such as Dumb Cane but if you follow this make sure you check the amount of water because the Coleus sucks up alot of moisture.