will perenials live over the winter in pots in garage?

15 years ago

Hi,

I live in south western ontario I don't know what zone that is.

I am new at container gardening and I have 5 perrenials ( Painted daisy,Purple cone flower,Black eyed susan and shasta daisies )that I planted 2 months ago in small pots.

My plan is to move them to larger permanent pots ( 13" diameter pots )and store them in my garage during winter.

Will my plan keep these plants alive in winter? or will they freeze die and never come back in spring? Do I water them during winter?

Please help me with any advise.

Thank you

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Comments (4)

greylady_gardener
15 years ago
Well I am going to jump in here even though I am not an expert. :)
Are you able to group your containers together in your yard and mound leaves or soil up around them? I think that even if you have them in your garage, you still might need some other protection like wrapping them in blankets and stuffing newspapers between the pots that are all grouped together for warmth. I hope someone who has actual experience with doing this will post. My only experience with leaving perennials in containers is two half barrels--one with a huge hosta and another with an annabelle hydrangea--both do well just sitting where I have them and they come through the winter just fine.
gg (who is also in SW Ontario)--Z-6 (b I think)
marricgardens
15 years ago
I have never tried to overwinter perennials in my garage but like other gardeners I have overwintered annuals in there. Our garage is heated but just so that it doesn't freeze. I overwinter my geraniums, asarina, convolvulus in there with no problem. I just make sure they are well watered and treated with insecticidal soap before I bring them in. I also water just to keep the soil damp, never let the roots go competely dry. This has worked for me for 10 years. Maybe it will work for perennials to, have to try it sometime just to see.
Another alternative might be to sink the pots into the ground. Maybe that will work better. Just make sure the pot is completely covered with soil and water well so plant roots don't freeze dry. Hope this helps. Marg
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Hi, Phyl. I would pretty much offer the same thing Pam said. If you set the plants on the floor, where they will actually remain warmer than if elevated to any degree. (Before I get corrected I'll point out that heat transfer by conduction, convection, and radiation are at work in a building. Even though heat rises & leaves the colder air at the floor, the conduction and radiation of geo-heat coming through the floor into the soil mass is enough to trump the cool air that settles there.) You should be able to pick up as full zone in hardiness just by being careful about not leaving the o/h door open for extended periods, so zone 6 plants should over-winter just fine, on the floor, unprotected. You can pick up another zone of hardiness (to 7) by inverting a cardboard box over the zone 7 plants, which is an excellent way to trap heat coming through the floor while still maintaining enough air flow so mold doesn't become a problem. The biggest problem with over-wintering in the garage is that plants will invariably leaf-out well ahead of their counterparts in the landscape. Though they need no light while dormant/quiescent, they will need light after they start post-dormant growth, which will occur after the chill requirement of the plant has been met and soil temperatures have been elevated to above approx 45* for several consecutive days. Freeze/thaw cycles do not kill plants unless the actual root temperatures drop below the minimum the plant is genetically programmed to deal with, or plants are warm enough for long enough to start out-of-season growth, which can later freeze. Billions of plants in nursery operations are successfully over-wintered annually under cover, so to suggest the practice is somehow inappropriate is quite a stretch. I overwinter around 200 containers of plants hardy up to 7 in my garage. All I do is toss a little snow on them from time to time to keep the roots from drying completely. Al
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I've overwintered helianthus microcephalus and eryngium in the garage. The eryngium was in 4 inch pots, so they were on the small side. The agastache might be iffy - is that kind hardy in your zone? I know my Apricot Sprite did not overwinter this past year, but perhaps it is not hardy here. I would let the plants go completely dormant, water, and then bring into the garage. You might want to check once or twice during the winter to make sure they are not bone dry, and water at least once. Also, if your garage is dark that is good - you want the plants to stay dormant throughout the winter. I cover my windows with black landscape fabric to keep it darker. :) Dee
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Mulching around them with fall leaves works, too. That's what I do. Although in zone 7 I have less to worry about. I put the pots as close as possible (touching, even) and put leaves all around and in between the pots, and an inch or two deep over them as well, once dormant. Although it's not recommended to mulch against a trunk, I find that if only done during dormancy, it won't hurt much (remove before bud break in spring). I'm more zone 6b/7a, colder than gardengal, but could probably get away without mulching/protecting my pots. I just don't want to risk it. Plus, I have to do SOMETHING with all those leaves, so I use them to mulch my tree seedlings in pots, which happen to now be located 15 feet from the compost pile I'll be moving the leaves to in spring.
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nohandle
15 years ago
First of all, as far as your zone goes, if you are west of London then you are likely 6a, unless you live in the Windsor area, in which case you may be 6b. East of London you may be getting into zone 5. Of course there are pockets of higher and lower zones in each area. Check the link at the bottom.
As for your containers, I have limited experience, but I have successfully overwintered pots both outside and in a garage type setting.
I overwintered a small hardy hibiscus in a 10' pot last year by mounding dry leaves (a lot of them) on top and around the pot in a corner of my yard. I plan on doing the same thing this winter for a few more potted trees I've since acquired.
I also overwintered pots on a covered deck (like a large cold frame, similar to a garage).
I think the idea is to make sure they are well watered before the first hard freeze and then try to keep them that way throughout the winter. If your garage is heated in any way, you may have problems.
If not, if and when a warm spell occurs where the snow melts and the ground warms a bit, make sure the pots don't dry out completely. Throw some snow on top and let it melt gradually like the snow outside (= low maintenance).
It's one idea anyways.
And it depends on the type of perennial. I've killed rosemary doing the same thing...too wet in winter can mean root rot for some plants.

Here is a link that might be useful: hardiness map of Canada
ianna
15 years ago
Don't overwinter your perennials in garages. Unless it's a open air garage (no walls). Perennials do require outdoor exposure to survive. they do need some moisture and also some sunlight to stimulate growth when spring arrives. So as much as you can ape an outdoor exposure you should.

This can be achieved via a coldframe, with hay covering the pots for added insulation. The insulation just helps to keep the temperatures steady = not to warm it up. You may need to vent the frame when the sun gets too warm. Absent of a coldframe, place your pots (grouped together) in a protected spot, away from the wind and the hazzards of winter's freeze and thaw cycles. In our modern suburbs, I've found that the little alley between houses over such a protective haven. I had left my potted shasta daisies, climbing hydrangeas, black eye susans and roses in this area and I've had a high success rate. I hadn't even bothered to mulch them.

If you don't have such an area -- place them close to fence corner away from the winds. In addition to heavy mulching with hay or leaves, I also would suggest that you pile up snow. Remember that what you are seeking is simply to steady the temperatures.

Now if you cannot find such spaces at all, you can dig a trench and place the pots the ground and once again cover with earth and mulch. - Add snow when the snow starts for added insulation. This is the method used for bonsai trees that require overwintering outdoors.

That work out.

Ianna

will perenials live over the winter in pots in garage?

Comments (4)

greylady_gardener

marricgardens

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