Lots of tropic garden plant can move indoors for the winter or else of losing them to the cold .
Marty Baldwin
We all love the big stir of colour that outdoorcontainer plantsdeliver , but the cost of refresh those pots once a year or more can get steep . It ’s a two - step ritual : buy a horde of flowers at the garden center in spring , and then uproot and toss them in the compost in fall . Would n’t it be great if you could save some over the wintertime to replant for next year ’s garden ? It plow out many democratic outside plant can handle life indoors and overwinter well with proper attention , accord to plant expert .
Credit:Marty Baldwin
Byron Martinis theco - owner of Logee ’s Plants for Home & Garden .
Justin Hancockis a plantsman for Costa Farms .
Which Plants Can Overwinter Indoors?
Not every type of garden industrial plant will winter well indoors . “ There are many plants produced for our summer ’s use as ornamental in container or gardens . They fall into two groups , ” says Byron Martin of Logee ’s Plants for Home & Garden , a Connecticut nursery specializing in rarefied andtropical plants . " One chemical group is made up of annual , like old maid or marigolds , and the relaxation are perennials , usually tropical perennial . So , when winter fare outdoors , they go off , ” he aver .
For example , most houseplant , fromphilodendronstohoyas , are tropical perennial , Martin excuse . If you ’ve move any houseplants like these outdoors for the summertime , they need to derive inside before the cold arrives or they ’ll give way . The same is true for many plant life you may think of as a summertime annual like begonia or geraniums .
You may have heard ofoverwintering geraniums(Pelargonium spp.)–perhaps your grandmother advert the dry base testicle upside down in the cellar – but you may also keep many other warm weather dearie such as begonias , abutilon , coleus , tropic hibiscus , impatiens , andsweet potato vines(Ipomea spp.)indoors .
Credit: Bill Holt
“ Theoretically anything can be grown as a perennial in the theater as long as it ’s given the condition it want to flourish , ” says Martin .
Match the Plant to Your Conditions
provide direct bright light , either on a sunny windowsill or via supplemental artificial light , is key , Martin says . The short 24-hour interval of winter reduce the instinctive light indoors importantly .
Though the plant may not continue to flower indoors , your goal is more to sustain their foliage and origin organization through the wintertime . They ’ll be in a good - stasis of ho-hum growth during the wintertime . For any plant you want to bring inside , explore the air temperature , humidness , and light the flora require to survive .
Justin Hancock , horticulturist for Florida based houseplant expert Costa Farms , says most outdoor plants take " really burnished light , like an unobstructed trash south- or west - facing terrace threshold ( east - cladding may ferment if you live in the South ) . " If you do n’t have the correct born light , he tell , “ A good bent of light-emitting diode store lights can do admiration . ”
When it number to temperature and humidness , Hancock recommends " median household temperatures ( 65 - 85 ° atomic number 9 ) and intermediate relative humidity grade ( 40 - 60 % ) . ”
Selecting Plants to Overwinter
Hancock has successfully overwintered many type of tropic plant , even through long Midwestern winters . Here are a few that he like to keep indoors until leap :
Some plant are easier to overwinter than others . For example , coleus , geraniums , succulent , abutilon , sweet-flavored potato vine , andbegoniasare among the easiest . More challenging plants such as jasmine , tropic hibiscus , and genus Mandevilla expect lots of light and uniform warmth that the distinctive rest home may not furnish .
Ways to Overwinter Plants Indoors
There are several methods ofoverwintering plants inside , from semi - participating growing in a quick , well - lit position , to dormancy in a cool , dark space . For many flora , it ’s easy to do the latter method because you ’re not asking the works to keep vegetation in your gloomy - humidity , down - brightness house .
Some plants go in full dormant for dry storage with stain bump off , likedahlia Tuber . Others can be kept dormant in pots once the folio are prune to the base , likebanana plants , canna , andColocasia , says Martin .
Hancock keeps prized plant that he jazz he wants to overwinter in containers , even if that means planting the raft in soil . That way he can just stab up the whole pot in fall , hold start the plant from the root focus of transplanting .
If you need to keep the industrial plant in a semi - active United States Department of State , do n’t be surprised if the plant life react to its new surround by cut down leaves soon after it comes indoors . It may also grow leggy and gangling , reaching for the light by spring . One thing that can help is totake stem turn cuttingsclose to spring . Impatiens , geranium , flame nettle , and begonia settle down easily in water , damp perlite , or seed starting mix , state Hancock . With fresh new roots , your cutting should be quick to raise well once moved outdoors again .
If you come down in love with these plants inside , Hancock says flame nettle , bougainvillea , abutilon , andrex begoniasare some popular summertime annual that can become full - clock time houseplants .
Steps for Overwintering Plants Indoors
Once you ’ve selected the plant life you require to winter in your dwelling house , follow these step to keep them pass until the next spring .
