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johnspir

Winter planting

johnspir
9 years ago

I'm in MI, and have some relatively new/small plants (blueberry, hops, grapes) that we picked up on clearance. I was going to wait to plant them in the ground until spring when we make a raised bed garden and was wondering what my best option for them until spring was...

Should I plant them in a bigger container and keep them outside? Bring them inside?

If this isn't the right forum, just let me know where to go and I will.

Comments (3)

  • johnspir
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    I should note that I've been reading various articles about planting them in the pots, etc... I have a south facing porch that I could tuck them into... I also have a garage that has 2 giant windows that might provide enough light in the winter... fully expecting another harsh one.

  • dajsnipe
    9 years ago

    Your correct to wait till spring. I would not recommend repotting them until early spring after they break dormancy, don't make the mistake of repotting them into to big of a container. You'll want to read up on pruning blueberries as well. They should be fine on the south porch -as well as the grapes, I am not sure about the hops.

  • szut (Zone 6 - MA)
    9 years ago

    If you leave them outside at the very least put the pots in the soil. Frequently roots are a lot more susceptible to damage from "extreme" weather than the branches are (both soil and snow insulate the roots normally). I would vote for temporarily planting them in the ground (perhaps even leaving them in their existing pots) and depending on their size considering to cover the grapes/blueberries with straw (and your field mouse situation).

    To the best of my knowledge you don't need light once a plant is in dormacy. There are no leaves to use the light. You do however have to make sure that the roots/plant do not overly dry out.

    I'm sure you are aware but hops are somewhat aggressive growers and spread out. I personally wouldn't put them in a raised bed near anything else. We find shoots popping up 3 feet from the base of our plants regularly and I strongly believe that their root system pulls a lot of the moisture from nearby soil. For that reason I wouldn't plan to put them too close to anything - especially blueberries that really love moist soil. (My closest plants to my hops are over 5 feet away and I have to water those plants much more than their neighbors that are 10 feet away.)

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