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Great Lakes Gardening

pond plants and canna overwintering- Help!

16 years ago

I came home from my local yard site today with some items new to me. I found an iris that was growing in water(yellow flag iris?), a papyrus, and some canna bulbs. I have never grown cannas, and get mice in my basement in winter. Can they be overwintered in the house? As far as the Iris, the man handed it to me and said it had been growing in water. The roots were totally clean, not a hint of any soil. The papyrus is a piece that I cut from a huge plant that had some kind of fabric on the bottom, again not a hint of soil. What do I do with my new-found treasures for the winter!

Comment (1)

runningtrails
16 years ago
Plunk the iris in the pond, as is. Put a rock on the roots to hold them down. Grew it in my pond for yearss that way and it doesn't need soinl in the pond. It'll overwinter there too , just fine or you can plant it in the garden now if you wish.

The canna bulbs need to be in the cold but not frozen basement, or the fridge. I don't think mice eat them, not sure.

The papyrus is not hardy here and won't survive outdoors. You'll need to keep it as a houseplant through the winter, in damp soil and lots of light.

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