With your planters - it's probably more about how wide they are and how deep. If they were to be sheltered under a good blanket of snow which would give vital insulation then outdoors might be safe. So long as the bulbs were fairly deeply planted and had about the same depth around and below them as they have over the top. It would be the frosts that would worry me, particularly a long and deep into the ground freeze. Does wrapping with some sort of insulating material provide enough protection in an unheated garage in your zone? Just a thought: before you water again - check from the bottom of the container. As the weather cools, and if there are no leaves to pump water, it can take a very long time - even months - before the mix becomes truly dry. Watering by the calendar instead of by the pot conditions can be a bit of a hazard sometimes.

i decided im going to buy tons of straw and pile it up all around the pots. most of my bushes are northern but i dont want to take the chance leaving them exposed and losing any over the winter. i have read from a few sources that the soil needs to stay moist throughout the winter otherwise the bushes wont make it. so does this mean i have to water the pots during freezing cold weather? wouldnt the water in the soil freeze and cause damage to the plants? if any of you care to share photos of your potted blueberry bushes that would be cool.

Thanks Blue Heron! I thought about trying to dig and plant within the same week, which I guess I can just see how the soil is at the new house, was just afraid that the roots wouldn't have time to re-establish before the soil froze and it might stress them out (though maybe they will be just as stressed in burlap). I do think the ideal situation is to have them in their new homes vs wrapped somewhere or in a pot but guess it just depends on the winter this year. Unfortunately for us the timing of finding a house we didn't know we wanted is coinciding with winter coming--and I had planted many things this year expecting to be in this house for at least 5 years. I could also put them all together in the barn, keep forgetting that we may have a barn. That might work better if they need a cold period and I can't get them planted? Also wasn't sure if the 'dark' of the basement would kill the upper stems, so maybe barn is better anyway if they can get some light? I also have peonies that just arrived a few weeks ago that I put into pots for now, sad that I won't see flowers next year from them, can those overwinter directly outside or would barn be better for them as well?

Thanks, Peg! I agree. The weather has been a bit... bizarre this year. Hopefully it's not a sign of things to come. Kms9: I'm a little depressed that I missed those at Lowes! I looked around this year for something more durable and wider for herbs (particularly mint), veggies, and annual plantings, but couldn't find anything worth the investment. I did read that plumeria roots grow outward rather than downward, so I'll definitely be on the search for something similar next year. I wonder how well they would work for a mini water garden. I saw one made out of a whiskey (I think) barrel somewhere and it looked neat. Aww. A gardener in training! That's adorable! Elucas101 & Jandey: Thank you! Laura: I wish that I couldn't believe it, but with the weather lately... Who knows what will happen. Come to think of it, the last November noreaster, that I can remember, did flood the garage. Ugh, not looking forward to this one. We're ready to run out and grab sand bags if things start going south. I'm sorry about your car! Why can't they design them so that all the important parts are waterproof? My father's car flooded and is experiencing electrical issues too. Sandy has been good to the automotive repair business. True, we're a bit accustomed to the flooding and winds here. I feel terrible for those up north that were blindsided. It's going to take a while for them to recover. Here's to hoping that they don't have a ton of snow dumped on them this year (knock on wood). After seeing your palms, I've been browsing through catalogs and sites to see what's available for this zone. I think I might be a potential palm addict! If only I had the space and conditions for them... The Plant Delights catalog had a nice selection. The fan palms looked awesome (particularly "Vulcano"). Who knows, I might be able to squeeze one in somewhere. Yes! I love DR's. I only have one right now that I grew from seed, but I have many seeds left so I think I'll start some more next year. If we could plant DR's and plumeria in the ground I'd have a small tropical forest! The few months of sharing the house with them isn't too bad considering how great they'll look come summer. I was raking pine straw again today. It never ends... The trees still have leaves. Ugh. I did manage to uncover another green tree frog! Poor thing, I hope its hibernation wasn't interrupted. Meh, what am I complaing about. It could be worse. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to treat for spider mites on overwintered plumeria? We brought the last of our house plants in last week (christmas cactus, spider plants, schefflera) and yesterday I noticed spider mites all over the plumeria leaves. They're in small clusters, so I'm sure they haven't been there long, but there are many clusters... I'm afraid this is just the beginning of something terrible.